The Empire Film Podcast The Lord Of The Rings: The Aristocrats (ft. guests Simon Farnaby & Ben Gregor)
Mar 27, 2026
Alex Godfrey, Empire journalist who led the interview. Ben Gregor, director of The Magic Faraway Tree. Simon Farnaby, actor-writer behind Paddington and family films. They chat about adapting Enid Blyton’s surreal tale for modern kids, reworking characters and stakes, practical sets and child-friendly choreography, casting choices and tiny production tricks that shaped the film.
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How Reading To His Daughter Shaped The Screenplay
- Simon Farnaby read The Magic Faraway Tree to his young daughter and discovered how much she laughed at the stories, which guided his screenplay choices.
- That prompted him to keep characters colourful and comedic while Ben Gregor focused on making sets and interactions feel immediate for children on set.
Clarify Character Identities When Source Material Is Inconsistent
- Adapting The Magic Faraway Tree required defining characters' identities because Enid Blyton's originals shift across books.
- Farnaby deliberately modernised roles and gave them distinct desires to create coherent arcs for a feature film.
Add Jeopardy When Adapting Episodic Children's Books
- Do add stakes and jeopardy when adapting episodic, whimsical books to a 100-minute film to give emotional throughlines.
- Farnaby added modern family conflict (kids glued to screens, a move to the country) to anchor the tree adventures.
