David Bowie auditioned for Lord of the Rings

David Bowie reportedly auditioned for the part of elf king Elrond, eventually played by Hugo Weaving in The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit films.

He played the Goblin King but David Bowie could have also been an elf lord.

Dominic Monaghan has revealed Bowie auditioned for a role in The Lord of the Rings films.

The actor, who played hobbit Meriadoc Brandybuck in the Peter Jackson movies, came across the Thin White Duke after his own audition.

In a recent Huffington Post interview he recalled the day Bowie walked into the Hubbard Casting agency office in London.

"I went over and talked to John Hubbard, who was running the audition, and he said, 'Hey, it went really well. You should wait around for five or 10 mins. We'll give you some feedback'," Monaghan told Huffington Post.

It was while sitting in the reception office that he looked up from a magazine to see the Changes singer, who died earlier this month.

"David Bowie came in and signed his little list and went in. And I'm assuming he read for Gandalf. I can't think of anything else he would've read for.

"He may have read for something else, but I'm a huge David Bowie fan, and I was lucky enough to know his son now so just seeing him in person was pretty special to me."

It is understood Bowie may have actually been after the part of elf lord Elrond and not Gandalf.

Director Sir Peter Jackson said in an interview with Entertainment Weekly in 2014 he felt the singer's fame might outshine the part.

"These are famous, famous characters, loved for nearly 50 years," Jackson said. "To have a famous, beloved character and a famous star colliding is slightly uncomfortable."

- nzherald.co.nz