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 | earthman | 

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Taglines:

Don't panic!

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Genres:

Adventure | Comedy | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

TV-PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

The story was originally written as a radio series of six shows broadcast on BBC Radio 4 between 8th March 1978 and 12th April 1978. As well as this TV series the story spawned further radio series, records, books, a stage production, a computer adventure game, a film (The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (2005)), and even a towel.

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Goofs

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

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Quotes

Slartibartfast: I'd much rather be happy than right, any day.
Arthur Dent: And are you?
Slartibartfast: No. That's where it all breaks down, of course.

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Crazy Credits

Animator Kevin Davies, credited from episodes four to six, receives a different, humorous title each time. The job titles are: Mouse Trainer, Milliways Catering and Bath Superintendent.

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Alternate Versions

Several different versions of the series survive on video. It was originally made as a six-episode BBC TV series (based on 'Douglas Adams''s radio scripts) but for the video cut was re-edited in places. The HHG was done on two SP tapes and also on one large SLP/EP tape. The SLP/EP runs continuously (though subtitled "Part One") and is cut into a sort of "movie." The ends of episodes are sometimes hard to distinguish, except in a bad cut toward the end where Arthur says "Mice?" and the music climaxes then cuts abruptly. The SP version comes in two parts and seems to come in both the unedited episodes and the "movie." All of these differ in some ways from the original broadcasts. Scenes like the one in the Vogon Airlock were cut from some re-broadcasts; they appear here. Other scenes "previously unaired" include Arthur and Ford searching for Slartibartfast's signature on a glacier and only appear on a few versions.

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Connections

Referenced in Odyssey 5: Pilot (2002)

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Soundtracks

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

User Reviews

A suitable adaption for fans of the novels and British humor in general

I've been into Douglas Adams' "Hitchhiker's Guide" series since grade school where it was introduced to me. So when I learned that I could have it presented to me in visual form, I was interested...just how could they adapt this novel, which strays every which way from the central story, into a mini-series of epic proportions?

Easy. As long as the Brits do it.

Get yourself a heard of young but experienced talent, who are no stranger to the airwaves in the UK, and stick close to the story. You're assured a winner. The book tells amazingly well on the screen, and the characters are pretty close to what your mind would imagine from descriptions in the text. Important points in the story occur when Adams strays from the main plot, and jumps into a description of the history of a certain object, person or event as described by the "Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy", a futuristic electronic know-all dictionary. The mini takes this to heart so it seems, and sticks with it, showing viewers animated sequences to what the Guide would be showing it's user. This is where the film turns in it's most brilliant sequences.

Granted, some of the effects are cheesy, but for the time of the film (1981) and the budget of a mini, I say they did well. So Zaphod's second head is a motionless blob of plastic, with a moving mouth for about three sequences. The look, and attitude of Marvin the depressed robot is just fantastic and should be ranked up there with C-3P0 and Data as one of the greatest androids to appear on a screen.

The final word on this one is that once again, the BBC has put together another gem. It may scare you, being on two tapes and all, but it's worth a look. A genuine quality piece.

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