The Original Hitchhiker Radio Scripts (1995) - Plot & Excerpts
25th Anniversary Edition of the scripts that launched a billion quips. March 1978 saw the first ever transmission of "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" on BBC Radio 4; the beginning of a cult phenomenon. This 25th Anniversary edition of the scriptbook includes a previously unpublished Hitchhiker script, 'Sheila's Ear'; a new introduction by producer Geoffrey Perkins; and a Who's Who of all those involved in the radio series. As well as all the new material, of course there are the twelve original radio scripts - Hitchhiker as it was written and exactly as it was broadcast for the very first time. They include amendments and additions made during recordings and original notes on the writing and producing of the series by Adams and Perkins. For those who have always loved Adams, as well as for his new generation of fans, these scripts are essential reading - with the previously 'lost' script making this edition a must-have piece of Adams memorabilia. From the Inside Flap The original, complete, and totally unedited scripts from the now famous BBC "Hitchhiker Radio Show." Join Douglas Adams on an epic adventure in time and space--including some helpful advice on how to see the universe for less than 30 Altairian dollars a day. About the Author Douglas Adams created all the various and contradictory manifestations of The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy: radio, novels, TV, computer game, stage adaptations, comic book and bath towel. He lectured and broadcast around the world and was a patron of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund and Save the Rhino International. Douglas Adams was born in Cambridge, UK and lived with his wife and daughter in Islington, London, before moving to Santa Barbara, California, where he died suddenly in 2001. After Douglas died the movie of Hitchhiker moved out of development hell into the clear uplands of production, using much of Douglas' original script and ideas. Douglas shares the writing credit for the movie with Karey Kirkpatrick.
I picked up a copy of The Original Hitchhiker Radio Scripts several months ago, about the same time I was re-listening to the show tapes. I finished reading thru this just in time for the movie. Arthur Dent, an unremarkable human on an unremarkable planet in an unremarkable part of the galaxy, is swept up in a wholly remarkable adventure when his planet is destroyed to make way for an interstellar bypass. He is rescued by a writer for The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy; they in turn are rescued by Zaphod Beeblebrox, President of the Galaxy who stole the ship Heart of Gold in order to search for a mythical planet. Things start getting complicated at this point. Not only do the scripts replicate the radio shows, but some of the lines that were cut for time or other reasons have been restored. In addition, notes about each episode are included, as well as forewords by Adams and Geoffrey Perkins. Having first been introduced to the Hitchhiker universe via the novels, I found it quite interesting to see how the story evolved from this version to the novels, since a good chunk of the later episodes ended up in The Restaurant at the End of the Galaxy. If you're not used to reading scripts, sifting your way thru the directions can be a bit of a challenge at first, but worth the work. Recommended to Adams fans, whether or not you already have the radio shows or not.
What do You think about The Original Hitchhiker Radio Scripts (1995)?
I have tried to get into radio comedy at various times. I spent many an hour trying to discover what was funny about the Goon Show as to me it just sounded like allot of man talking in silly voices. I had discovered Hitch Hikers through the TV show and had subsequently read all the Hitch Hiker novels and thought Douglas Adams the greatest writer I’d ever read.And then, one Christmas, nearly two thousand years after one man had been nailed to a tree for saying how great it would be to be nice to people for a change, BBC Radio 4 played the Hitch Hikers radio series on consecutive nights and I tuned in my portable hoping to change my opinion of Radio comedy by what was universally considered a ground breaking show.Well I never got my epiphany, and still can’t do Radio comedy, so buying this book is a difficult circle to square. I think I’d buy directions in the use of tooth picks if Douglas Adams had written them. Anyway it’s got a nice cover.
—Ian Wood
Absolutely indispensable.The film was an honourable attempt incorporating a lot of Adams own work.But the radio series are the definitive article and the infinite subtlety of the BBC radio actors voicework makes it impossible for any subsequent version to supplant them from one's heart.Have you yet obtained the same actors' recent conversion of the last three novels into radio series?
—John
I stumbled across this strange gem of a book when I was in high school. Being involved with the school radio station, I was looking for something to do as a project for a radio cmpetition and found this book. Previous to this discovery, I hadn't known that Adams had originally created The Hitchhiker's Guide as a radio series before it was a novel. It blew my mind. There are some significant differences between the novels and the scripts, but that comes from this technically being the "first draft." I never did get to record any of the scripts for my competition, but a part of me still wants to take a stab at it someday.
—Kat
