Hordes of the Things (radio series)
| Genre | Comic fantasy |
|---|---|
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Country |
 United Kingdom |
| Language(s) | English language |
| Home station | BBC Radio 4 |
| Starring |
Simon Callow Frank Middlemass Paul Eddington Maggie Steed Christian Rodska Jonathan Lynn |
| Created by | Andrew Marshall and John Lloyd |
| Written by | Andrew Marshall and John Lloyd |
| Produced by | Geoffrey Perkins |
| Narrated by | Patrick Magee |
| Air dates | since 25 November 1980 |
| No. of episodes | 4 |
| Audio format | Stereo |
| Website | http://www.nigel-baker.co.uk/hott/ |
Hordes of the Things is a 1980 BBC radio comedy series parodying J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, and the fantasy genre in general, in a style similar to The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. It was written by "A. P. R. Marshall and J. H. W. Lloyd" (Andrew Marshall and John Lloyd) and produced by Geoffrey Perkins. It is unrelated to the game of the same name.
There are other minor characters named after brands of bath products: Badedas the Blue, and Matey the White.
The series consists of four half-hour episodes or "Chronicles", originally broadcast on BBC Radio 4 from 25 November – 16 December 1980. This was the only uncut broadcast; all subsequent repeats have omitted part of the opening narration from "The First Chronicle".
The series was launched with a lot of hype. A full-page feature in Radio Times included a map of Albion and a spoof interview with Marshall and Lloyd. Despite this, the series was repeated only once, never released on cassette or CD, and largely forgotten until BBC 7 dusted off the (still abridged) tapes for a rerun in May 2003, December 2003, and again in July 2008.
Only six months after Hordes of the Things was first aired, the first episode of the BBC's radio production of The Lord of the Rings began its 26-week run.
BBC Audiobooks Ltd. released the series on CD on 8 October 2009.
The plot concerns the threat to the small kingdom of Albion by "The Evil One" (a Dark Lord) and her ravening hordes, which have completely surrounded the country and are preparing to move in. Since Albion is an ancient name for Britain or England, the contemporary audience could choose to find references in this to their concerns about the new female Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, the European Common Market, the labour or trade union movement, or feminism. That The Evil One is female is barely mentioned as the story runs – she is off-stage.
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