A memorial to The Lord of the Rings author JRR Tolkien has been officially unveiled at the Oxford University college where he taught.

The memorial, created by sculptor Tim Tolkien, his grand-nephew, has been installed at Pembroke College.

Fantasy author Neil Gaiman was master of ceremonies at the unveiling described Tolkien as 'a towering figure'.

The Tolkein family at home in Oxford and, right, the Lord of the Rings author (Image: Canva)

The bronze relief shows Tolkien, who died in 1973, as he looked during his time at Pembroke.

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He served as the Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon from 1925 to 1945 while living in North Oxford with his wife, Edith, and children.

It was during this period that he wrote The Hobbit and much of The Lord of the Rings, as well as critical works, including ‘Beowulf: The Monsters and the Critics’.

Mr Gaiman, author of The Sandman and Good Omens, told the BBC that he had always been a fan.

After finding The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers in the school library, he said: "I read them over and over and when I got to the end of The Two Towers I’d go back to The Fellowship of the Ring.

"And when at the age of 12 I won the school English prize they said: ‘What do you want? We’ll get you a book.' And I said: 'Can I have The Return of the King? I want to find out how it ends.'"

Neil Gaiman, author of Good Omens, was master of ceremonies (Image: Phil Sills)

He said hosting the event was "an honour that I’m not worthy of, and that’s fine because none of us are".

Sir Ernest Ryder, Master of Pembroke College, said: "His impact on generations of readers and writers worldwide is immeasurable, and we hope that this memorial will serve as a lasting tribute to his contributions to literature and to our College community.’

The unveiling ceremony also featured a poem by Pembroke alumna and writer Roz Kaveney.

The college's Junior and Middle Common Rooms each raised 10 per cent of the project costs, with generous additional funding from the Tolkien Society, the Tolkien Estate and others.

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In 2020 actors Sir Ian McKellen and Martin Freeman led a £4.5million crowdfunding campaign to try to buy JRR Tolkien's former home at 20 Northmoor Road in north Oxford and turn it into a museum.

However, the campaign failed as it fell short of its target.

Tolkien also lived at 76 Sandfield Road in Headington for 15 years.

The house bears a stone plaque saying: "JRR Tolkien lived here 1953-1968" next to a picture of a dragon and the words "The Hill".