Great News! Peter Jackson has confirmed that Ian Holm will be returning to Middle Earth to reprise his role as Bilbo Baggins. Using his official Facebook page, where he has been posting regular updates on the production of The Hobbit, Jackson reassured fans that “Ian will be returning as the older Bilbo”.

The confirmation came after users commented on the “Start of production” video blog recently posted on the page, wondering whether the voice at the end of the clip belonged to Ian Holm – and whether that meant he was back in his Lord of the Rings role.

Showing an impressive level of commitment to his fans (the clip received more than 5,000 comments) Jackson addressed the matter explaining that “the recording was actually Martin Freeman’s voice” – Freeman will in fact appear as younger Bilbo – but he also admitted that he himself wasn’t sure who it was when he first heard it.