British Comedy Guide
The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy. Arthur Dent (Simon Jones)
The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy

The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy

  • TV sitcom
  • BBC Two
  • 1981
  • 6 episodes (1 series)

Television adaptation of the highly successful sci-fi radio sitcom and comic novel, created by Douglas Adams. Also features Simon Jones, David Dixon, Sandra Dickinson, Mark Wing-Davey, David Learner and more.

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Episode menu

Series 1, Episode 5 - Fit The Fifth

The crew awake to find themselves not in the afterlife as expected, but at Milliways, the restaurant at the end of the universe, where Ford meets an old friend and Arthur argues the merits of vegetarianism with the dish of the day. In the car park Zaphod gets light fingered and they head off in a ship for excitement, adventure and really wild things. But the autopilot it seems, has already been given directions as to its destination...

Further details

Arthur, Ford, Zaphod and Trillian discover that the explosion caused by the police has allowed them to travel forward through time. They are at Milliways: The Restaurant at the End of the Universe. Here, they wine and dine whilst all of creation is destroyed around them.

Zaphod then gets a telephone call from Marvin, who has been waiting for his master's return for several billion years. Everyone meets up in the car park, and there they steal a spaceship which is totally black.

As everything in the ship is black, they cannot control it. During the voyage, Marvin claims that he is able to tell what the Ultimate Question is by reading Arthur's brain wave patterns. However, they are distracted when they discover that they are now going backwards through time. It turns out the ship they have stolen is scheduled for something called a 'Sun Dive'.

Broadcast details

Date
Monday 2nd February 1981
Time
9pm
Channel
BBC Two
Length
30 minutes

Cast & crew

Cast
Simon Jones Arthur Dent
David Dixon Ford Prefect
Sandra Dickinson Trillian
Mark Wing-Davey Zaphod Beeblebrox
David Learner Marvin
Stephen Moore Marvin (Voice)
Peter Jones The Book (Voice)
Guest cast
Jack May Garkbit (Head Waiter)
Colin Jeavons Max Quordlepleen
Barry Frank Warren Hotblack Desiato
David Prowse (as Dave Prowse) Bodyguard
Colin Bennett Zarquon
Peter Davison Dish of the Day
Writing team
Douglas Adams Writer
John Lloyd Writer (Additional Material)
Production team
Alan J. W. Bell Director
Alan J. W. Bell Producer
John Lloyd Associate Producer
Ian Williams Editor
Andrew Howe-Davies Production Designer
Dee Robson Costume Designer
Bernie Leadon Composer
Paddy Kingsland Composer

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