That very true about the Frodo/Sam thread in the BBC version - perhaps better than the book even!
(is that sacrilege?)
I'd be interested in your opinion of this new unabridged audiobook reading of FOTR I came across on YouTube (
http://www.youtube.com/user/PhilsStuffofDoom). It's a fan effort which relies on the movies for backing music and even for character voices, but I think he does a really good job (I am not affiliated with this project).