- The Good: Scifi, humor, all-around madness… in stereo!
- The Bad: Poor audio quality in parts
- The Literary: BBC Radiophonic Workshop created the distinctive sound design
The day the Vogon alien race comes to demolish the Earth to make way for a hyperspace bypass also happens to be the day that Arthur Dent receives the best advice he’s ever been given, “Don’t panic.” Which happens to be printed on the cover of the book The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy in large, friendly letters.
I have previously reviewed the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy novel, so this review will focus on the BBC radio series. I consider myself a deep fan of the novel and am surprised to find that the BBC radio series was the basis for the books, and the not the other way around. In fact, in the radio genre, the Guide was the first radio comedy show to be recorded in stereophonic sound.
Being a fan of experimental music, particularly Pink Floyd and The Beatles, Adams wanted an inventive sound for this program. The full cast of professional actors and sound effects make for an extremely engaging listening experience. The sounds effects were especially innovative at the time, but to modern ears, come off a little quaint, which only adds to the charm. Unfortunately, in several cases, the din rises to chaos, so you can’t really understand the dialog in those parts, but I think this is more due to the quality of the recording itself.
Most interesting are the differences in plot between the radio show and the novel. It’s clear that Adams heavily edited and refined the story for the novel, including changing plot points and adding new characters. One small example, but which works much better in the books is in the first chapter. In the radio show it’s Arthur rather than Ford who convinces the bulldozer operator to lay down in front of his own equipment in the mud while Arthur and Dent pop into the pub. That seems trivial, but in that chaotic moment it makes much more sense for the experienced galactic traveler to confuse everyone with logic instead of the bumbling Earth man.
Despite some differences, the radio show has the same humor, wit, sarcasm, and irreverence of the novel. And it’s a joy to experience it in a whole new medium. This recording even provides more personal insights with a retrospective on the creation of the radio show including interviews with Adams, the actors, and many others involved in the production.
Highly recommended for fans of comedic scifi and Guide enthusiasts!