The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy

( 13 )

Overview

Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy began as a 1978 BBC radio series by Douglas Adams, who adapted the material into a bestselling novel in 1979. This six-part BBC television miniseries - a witty and farcical science-fiction send-up -- stars Simon Jones as gormless Arthur Dent, who wakes up one morning to discover that a demolition crew is preparing to destroy his house and put in a new highway bypass. Saddened by this news, Arthur accepts the offer of his buddy Ford Prefect to head down to the local pub for a ...
See more details below
DVD (Repackaged)
$18.53
BN.com price
(Save 7%)$19.99 List Price
Pick Up In Store

Pick Up In Store

Reserve and pick up in 60 minutes at your local store

Other sellers (DVD)
  • All (13) from $9.45   
  • New (11) from $14.90   
  • Used (2) from $9.45   

More About This Product

Overview

Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy began as a 1978 BBC radio series by Douglas Adams, who adapted the material into a bestselling novel in 1979. This six-part BBC television miniseries - a witty and farcical science-fiction send-up -- stars Simon Jones as gormless Arthur Dent, who wakes up one morning to discover that a demolition crew is preparing to destroy his house and put in a new highway bypass. Saddened by this news, Arthur accepts the offer of his buddy Ford Prefect to head down to the local pub for a drink, but is soon greeted by Ford's wild revelation that he is in fact not a human but a space alien from a small planet just outside of Betelgeuse, who has spent many years on the planet Earth in the guise of a human actor, doing background research for a book called 'The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.' Before Arthur can fully digest this news, a Vogon spaceship appears in the sky and blasts out the message that the entire Earth will soon be destroyed to put in an intergalactic superhighway. At the last moment, Arthur and Ford manage to board the spaceship to escape obliteration themselves. Arthur is soon ensconced in a strange space vessel festooned with all manner of confusing hardware, and jets through a series of increasingly off-the-wall adventures, where he meets such wild characters as three-armed galaxy president Zaphod Beeblebrox; Trillian, the latter's girlfriend; neurotic robot Marvin; and Veet Voojagig, a graduate student with a ballpoint pen fixation. Like Dr. Who and other BBC productions, Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy took its US bow on PBS affiliate stations.
Read More Show Less

Special Features

Closed Caption; Douglas Adams tribute program; Outtakes and deleted scenes; Behind-the-scenes footage; The making of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Read More Show Less

Editorial Reviews

Barnes & Noble - Greg Fagan
Gleefully verbal, intensely witty, and faux tech in the manner of all the great BBC space series, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy holds up remarkably well on DVD, even 20 years after its initial U.S. run on public television. The brainchild of Beeb writer Douglas Adams Doctor Who, it concerns the intergalactic adventures of Ford Prefect and Arthur Dent: respectively, a humanoid alien researching an update for the titular tome and an Englishman plucked from Earth moments before it is blasted to bits to make way for an interstellar expressway. Prefect David Dixon and Dent Simon Jones, in pajamas and robe throughout wind up on a quest to find "the meaning of life, the universe, and everything," which turns out to be 42, and their tour includes dinner at the Restaurant at the End of the Universe, amid other refreshingly absurd layovers. If you haven't stopped reading yet, you're a likely candidate for this three-hour journey into Mr. Adams' playfully wicked imagination, which is celebrated on the second DVD of this wonderful two-disc set.
Read More Show Less

Product Details

  • Release Date: 10/4/2005
  • UPC: 794051235725
  • Original Release: 1981

    • Rating:

  • Source: Bbc Warner
  • Presentation: Repackaged
  • Time: 3:10:00
  • Format: DVD
  • Sales rank: 12,187

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits
Martin Benson ,
Stephen Moore Voice Only
Rayner Bourton Newscaster
Michael Cule Vogon Guard
Peter Davison Dish of the Day
Sandra Dickinson
David Dixon
Peter Jones Voice Only
David Learner Marvin
Joe Melia
Gil Morris Gag Halfrunt
David Prowse Bodyguard
David Tate Eddie the Computer
Richard Vernon Slartibartfast
Mark Wing-Davey , Zaphod Beeblebrox
Technical Credits
Alan J.W. Bell Director
Douglas Adams Screenwriter
Read More Show Less

Scene Index

Disc #1 -- The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
1. Almost the Beginning of the End [3:29]
2. Opening Titles [8:33]
3. Ford Prefect [5:21]
4. The Arrival of the Vogon Fleet [4:41]
5. Inside the Spaceship [5:52]
6. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy [3:20]
7. The Babel Fish [2:45]
8. Closing Credits [:48]
1. Opening Titles [2:20]
2. Poetry Reading [4:11]
3. The Book [2:58]
4. The Infinite Improbability Drive [2:00]
5. The Sirius Cybernetic Corporation [5:11]
6. The Big Zee [5:27]
7. A Meeting [7:43]
8. Closing Credits [1:07]
1. Opening Titles [2:05]
2. Magrathea [3:52]
3. A Message From the Past [7:15]
4. Evasive Action [6:43]
5. Manual Improbability Control [2:47]
6. The Planet Surface [4:04]
7. Slartibartfast [2:48]
8. Closing Credits [1:38]
1. Opening Titles [3:10]
2. The Story of the Beginning [5:49]
3. The Second Greatest Computer [2:12]
4. The Answer [3:13]
5. Careless Talk Costs Lives [5:10]
6. Benjy & Frankie [7:44]
7. It's Not Easy Being a Cop." [4:14]
8. "After This, Things Can Only Get Better." [1:15]
1. Opening Titles [2:42]
2. The Restuarant at the End of the Universe [2:55]
3. Hotblack Desiato - The Man in the Zoot Suit [3:16]
4. Disaster Area [2:29]
5. The Dish of the Day [9:25]
6. A Call From the Car Park [8:21]
7. The End of the Universe [4:09]
8. Almost the Beginning of the End [2:22]
1. Opening Titles [3:29]
2. Exictement, Adventure and Really Wild Things [8:33]
3. The Concert [5:21]
4. The Beginning of the End Again [4:41]
5. The Golgafrinchams [5:52]
6. Don't Panic [3:20]
7. The Question [2:45]
8. Mostly Harmless [:48]
Read More Show Less

Menu

Disc #1 -- The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
   Play All
   Episode Selection
      Episode 1
      Episode 2
      Episode 3
      Episode 4
      Episode 5
      Episode 6
   Scenes
      Episode 1
      Episode 2
      Episode 3
      Episode 4
      Episode 5
      Episode 6
   Set-Up
      Remixed Stereo
      Mono
      Subtitles: On/Off
      Production Notes: On/Off
Disc #2 -- The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
   Don't Panic
   Douglas Adams Omnibus
   Communicate
   Behind the Scenes
   The Making of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
   Subtitles: On/Off
   Pebble Mill at One
   Deleted Scene From Episode 2
   Photogallery
   Out-Takes
   Tomorrow's World Sequence
   Peter Jones Introduction
   Trailer
Read More Show Less

Customer Reviews

Average Rating 4.5
( 13 )
Rating Distribution

5 Star

(7)

4 Star

(4)

3 Star

(2)

2 Star

(0)

1 Star

(0)

Your Rating:

Review Guidelines
Add Recommendations
Your Name: Create a Pen Name or

Barnes & Noble.com Review Rules

Our reader reviews allow you to share your comments on titles you liked, or didn't, with others. By submitting an online review, you are representing to Barnes & Noble.com that all information contained in your review is original and accurate in all respects, and that the submission of such content by you and the posting of such content by Barnes & Noble.com does not and will not violate the rights of any third party. Please follow the rules below to help ensure that your review can be posted.

Reviews by Our Customers Under the Age of 13

We highly value and respect everyone's opinion concerning the titles we offer. However, we cannot allow persons under the age of 13 to have accounts at BN.com or to post customer reviews. Please see our Terms of Use for more details.

What to exclude from your review:

Please do not write about reviews, commentary, or information posted on the product page. If you see any errors in the information on the product page, please send us an email.

Reviews should not contain any of the following:

  • - HTML tags, profanity, obscenities, vulgarities, or comments that defame anyone
  • - Time-sensitive information such as tour dates, signings, lectures, etc.
  • - Single-word reviews. Other people will read your review to discover why you liked or didn't like the title. Be descriptive.
  • - Comments focusing on the author or that may ruin the ending for others
  • - Phone numbers, addresses, URLs
  • - Pricing and availability information or alternative ordering information
  • - Advertisements or commercial solicitation

Reminder:

  • - By submitting a review, you grant to Barnes & Noble.com and its sublicensees the royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable right and license to use the review in accordance with the Barnes & Noble.com Terms of Use.
  • - Barnes & Noble.com reserves the right not to post any review -- particularly those that do not follow the terms and conditions of these Rules. Barnes & Noble.com also reserves the right to remove any review at any time without notice.
  • - See Terms of Use for other conditions and disclaimers.
Search for Products You'd Like to Recommend

Recommend other products that relate to your review. Just search for them below and share!

Create a Pen Name

Your Pen Name is your unique identity on BN.com. It will appear on the reviews you write and other website activities. Your Pen Name cannot be edited, changed or deleted once submitted.

 
Your Pen Name can be any combination of alphanumeric characters (plus - and _), and must be at least two characters long.

Continue Anonymously
Sort by: Showing all of 13 Customer Reviews

  • Anonymous

    Posted October 1, 2010

    Ow .... NO NOT AGAIN!!!

    Here we go again in a masterpiece of cult movies. Monty Python Humor, Space ships, and Hitchhikers. What could be better

    1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Posted February 9, 2011

    more from this reviewer

    Easily one of the five or six best versions of the Hithhiker's Guide

    This is the best TV adaptation of a radio series simultaneously adapted into a book in the history of the form. Surprisingly competent for a BBC production of the period, it knocks the theatrical movie (which is still quite enjoyable) flat on its ass.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Anonymous

    Posted October 8, 2010

    10-10-10

    Gotta get this today. Sunday's date, 10-10-10, is binary for 42!

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Posted October 1, 2010

    more from this reviewer

    Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy- movie

    The first movie presentation of Douglas Adams's Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is fun to watch. Originally aired on BBC television in the early 80's the movie takes a little more in-depth to the book than the 2008 version. Although the special effects may not be "Lucas or Cameron" material it still gives to the story about Arthur Dent, who, on the last day of Earth gets pulled into one misadventure after another with Ford Prefect, who trying to update the Hitchhiker's Guide. The regular gang is here as they try to discover the ultimate question.

    Good fun even if it is a little campy. Watch for special appearance by Douglas Adams.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Anonymous

    Posted October 1, 2010

    Great movie

    This is a great movie if you've read the book. However, the jokes were all rushed and some of the really good ones got skipped. The whole movie was kind of scrunched together, really, but a die-hard fan of the books will enjoy it. If you haven't read the book, I don't recommend it, because it does a poor job of explaining things.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Anonymous

    Posted October 1, 2010

    It's a comedy masterpiece!

    It's all been said before, however, Hal's review for the all movie guide contains the glaringly incorrect information that the books spawned the Radio series. The radio series came first and THGTTG was only supposed to be one episode of a series called 'The ends of the earth'. Adams liked the ideas behind that first episode so much, he devoloped the rest of the series around it, making them fit the 30 minute segments which is why the radio series had fits instead of episodes. Anyway, enough of the banter, buy it now. Let's hope the forthcoming Movie is as fittingly funny as this version. Mos Def: great things are expected of you as Ford, please make Doglas Adams proud.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Anonymous

    Posted October 1, 2010

    So long and Thanks for all the Fish

    This is A great one If you don't get a kick out of this DON'T PANIC I've seen this one many times and I still get a kick out of it

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Anonymous

    Posted October 1, 2010

    A Must Have for SciFi fans....

    This miniseries is a wonderful addition to your collection, especially if you liked the books, or ''Red Dwarf'', or ''Doctor Who'', or ''Black Adder''. The special effects are pretty sorry, but that's not what you would be looking for with this series, anyway. The extras disk is great. I especially like ''behind the scenes'' where you get to see how mind-numbingly boring working as a TV actor can be. It's also great to have footage of the late Douglas Adams. A very well-done DVD package.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Anonymous

    Posted November 27, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted June 17, 2010

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted May 17, 2012

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted November 20, 2008

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted October 7, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

Sort by: Showing all of 13 Customer Reviews