The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy 

Arthur Dent and his friend Ford Prefect escape the destruction of Earth only to face incredible trials, tribulations and adventures in space and time.

Stars:

Simon Jones, David Dixon, Peter Jones

5 wins.

Cast

Complete series cast summary:
Peter Jones	...	The Book 6 episodes, 1981
Simon Jones	...	Arthur Dent 6 episodes, 1981
David Dixon	...	Ford Prefect 6 episodes, 1981
Sandra Dickinson	...	Trillian 5 episodes, 1981
Mark Wing-Davey	...	Zaphod Beeblebrox 5 episodes, 1981
Stephen Moore	...	Marvin / ... 5 episodes, 1981
David Learner	...	Marvin 4 episodes, 1981
David Tate	...	Eddie / ... 3 episodes, 1981
Martin Benson	...	Vogon Captain 2 episodes, 1981
Richard Vernon	...	Slartibartfast 2 episodes, 1981
Rayner Bourton	...	Newscaster 2 episodes, 1981

Storyline

Arthur Dent is your average middle-class Briton. One day, while trying to prevent his house being destroyed to build a highway, his friend Ford Prefect whisks him away to the pub and explains that the Earth is about to be destroyed and they need to escape. Intergalactic, inter-time adventures ensue.

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Plot Keywords:

friend | cult favorite | unidentified flying object | humanoid alien | earth | 

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Taglines:

Don't panic!

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Genres:

Adventure | Comedy | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

TV-PG

Details

Official Sites:

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (web project by Douglas Adams)

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

30 October 1982 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

Filming Locations:

BBC Television Centre, Wood Lane, Shepherd's Bush, London, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

32 min (6 episodes) 152 min (2 parts) 25 min (7 episodes) (original) 33 min (6 episodes) (subsequent syndication) 33 min (6 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Mono Stereo (video release)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

At the request of Mark Wing-Davey, two stuffed "sausage-shaped" panels were added to the Zaphod costume, along the inside of each thigh. The implication was that, along with an extra head and extra arm, Zaphod had two penises. The original design was for them to be nine inches long, but the wardrobe department requested that they be reduced to seven. They are not visible in any shots in the final edited series, although they can be seen - if you know what you're looking for, and care to - in some production stills. [Source: "Don't Panic!" behind-the-scenes DVD extra, 2001]

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Goofs

The person operating Zaphod's third arm can be seen on multiple occasions.

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Quotes

[repeated line]
Marvin: Life. Don't talk to me about life.

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Crazy Credits

After the credits for episode 3, the voice of the book returns briefly to resolve which one of the characters sustained a bruised arm -- a question that had been raised earlier in the episode, but left unanswered because it was unimportant.

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Alternate Versions

For the original run in the United States, the six-part series was edited into seven parts (since the original episodes all ran over thirty minutes and could not fit into the rigid 30-minute time slot). An interesting sidenote to this is that when the six 35-minute episodes were made into seven 30-minute episodes, the plot recap intended for the beginning of each episode appeared five minutes later in the program with each subsequent installment (and did not appear at all in the final episode!) After this version was televised on PBS stations a few times, the program disappeared from American airwaves for a while. Then the original version, with its six slightly overlong episodes, showed up, and that's all that's been seen on public TV since.

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Connections

Referenced in Doctor Who: The Rings of Akhaten (2013)

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Soundtracks

Journey of the Sorcerer
(title music)
Written by Bernie Leadon
Arranged by Tim Souster

User Reviews

Don't Panic, it's really quite good

In this 6-part Mini based on the Douglas Adam's radio scripts, Ford Perfect (David Dixon) saves his friend Arthur Dent (Simon Jones, whom made not one, but two of the best mini's of the '80's, this and Brideshead Revisted, both in 1981 mind you. I'm inclined to think that Simon got a hold of the Infinite Improbability Drive) from the annihilation of Earth to pave the way for an intergalactic hyperspatial express route . Ford, unbeknowst to Arthur is an alien and whisks him away on a comical adventure that includes, but not limited to, everything. The humor is delightfully British,most of the characters dead-on (a given, since a lot of the cast were holdover's from the radio play). The effects may be a tad dated (an understatement if I ever heard one), however I feel that it adds to the charm of the show rather than detracts. All in all a marvelous adaption.

My Grade: A