Limited edition Marvin T-shirt on Qwertee

Today only (between 24 and 25th April 2013 depending on your time zone) you can buy a nice Marvin t-shirt on Qwertee.com. It has been designed by thomashy2000 (his website : http://wurwaldesign.com/tshirts/.

http://www.qwertee.com/product/marvin-s-medicine/

The H2G2 game is in fact an Ipad/Iphone app!

Ok, some of you may be disapointed by this news ("What? there won't be an other Hitchhiker game?? But i'm waiting since 1985") but others will be very please to know that, according to Wired.com, Hothead Games is working on an Hitchhiker app for Iphone and Ipad, involving Simon Jones (Yes! Arthur Dent himself!) that "will, essentially, be your own copy of the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy — the device from the stories, not the stories themselves. "

"I mean, you can pull up Wikipedia on your smartphone, but will it tell you about the Babel Fish or the Ravenous Bugblatter Beast of Traal? Well, OK, of course it will, because it’s largely written by geeks. But will it tell you about them with cartoons on a soothing green background and tell you about them aloud in Simon Jones’s voice? I think not. "

"The app will be all about the Hitchhiker’s universe, as though you really were using the Guide. Like the Star Trek PADD app that came out recently for iOS, the Hitchhiker’s app will be somewhat interactive, but will not go so far as to be a game. That’s despite the fact that the company that’s producing it, Hothead Games, is (as its name would subtly suggest) primarily a maker of games."

Of course I still wish they make a new computer adventure game from Hitchhiker, but this is great news too. Many tried along the year to make their own Hitchhiker book using a mobile device and wikipedia (see this example : http://io9.com/389983/now-you-can-have-the-real-hitchhikers-guide-to-the-galaxy), but even if wikipedia is often "apocryphal, or at least wildly inaccurate," it is certainly not as funy as the real Guide.

According to an other site, the Application will be ready "this fall. The price will be $0, and it appears as if future entires will be paid downloads".  I'm not great fan of additional paid downloads, as it can rapidly become a lot more expensive that what you would have wished to pay for the application. It means also that the free content could be quite limited, and some additional content would be produced only if people are willing to pay for it. If you've got to pay for each entry of the guide you would like to see it would be quickly annoying. Even if it would be quite funny (ir you're a masochist) to pay 0,79 euros for the entry about the planet earth !

Well, anyway, i'm a  bit masochist, and I can't wait to install the app on my ipad. I already bought my Don't Panic Ipad case  and installed my don't panic wallpaper. Come  on guys, i'm ready !!

Don't miss original Hitchhiker TV Series artwork on ebay

 Rod Lord has put a lot of new incredible items on ebay and continues to put new ones each week. So if you're interested with incedible collector items for The Hitchhiker's Guide to The Galaxy TV series, you have to watch very closely this list :


http://shop.ebay.co.uk/rodlord/m.html?_trksid=p4340.l2562

If you don't want to miss any item posted by Rod Lord on ebay join Rod's H2G2 mailing list http://www.rodlord.com/pages/hhgg.htm

H2G2 back on stage at Glasgow (24th march-2 april)

The Hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy is back on stage! It's great news after years of shortage (apart from the great Hitchhiker Live events in 2008 and 2009, H2G2 have been quite rare on stage since Disney bought the rights of the movie in 1998).

You can read here an article about the diverent versions of Hitchhiker on stage.

The Hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy will be on stage at the Ramshorn Theatre from the 24th mars to the 2 april thanks to the Strathclyde Theatre Group.

AGNERS GLASGOW INTERNATIONAL COMEDY FESTIVAL
Strathclyde Theatre Group with Radio Theatre Group
Thursday 24 March - Saturday 2 April@ 7.30
THE HITCH-HIKER’S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY
by Douglas Adams
directed by Susan C. Triesman @ Bruce Downie
PEOPLE OF EARTH YOUR ATTENTION PLEASE!
A rare opportunity to witness the hilarious legendary BBC series: the one that pushed back the boundaries of radio comedy. DON’T PANIC! Bring your towel!!  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. Imagine being in the studio for the first ever recording!!
There is nothing funnier than the original radio scripts by the great comic genius, Douglas Adams. Meet Deep Thought and find the Answer to Life, the Universe and Everything! Meet Marvin the Paranoid Android!! Spend quality time with Arthur Dent, Ford Prefect, Zaphod Beeblebrox,Trillian and Slartifartblast!!!
Tickets: Mon – Tues £7/4 Wed – Sat £10/7
Advance booking: www.ticketsoup.com

Update. Article about Hitchhiker on Stage

The Hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy has been adapted on stage many times since its first ever stage adaptation at the Institute of Contempory Arts (ICA) in London, between 1 and 9 May 1979.

I have added numerous pics and you can also download three full theatre programmes.

You can find the article in the "H2G2 the myth" section of the douglasadams.eu website.

If you have some informations that i didn't publish about the Hitchhiker's stage adaptations, please get in touch, and I'll update the article accordingly.

Hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy, this year's book for Vancouver

Vancouver is a froody place. "The Hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy" was chosen by Vancouver residents as the book the whole city should read this fall.

"This year's One Book, One Vancouver winning book was chosen by Vancouver residents. For three weeks in June, Vancouverites voted online and at the Library's 21 branches for the book they think we should all read this fall.

The choices were: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie or The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

And in a vote closer than the hairs on the head of a ravenous bugblatter beast of Traal, you chose Douglas Adams' The Hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy! "

 Vancouver's public library is organizing several events from the 1st September to the 20th November. The book will be brought to life for audiences around the city through an array of fun events and contests, including writing workshops, a film screening, a high-tech Innovation Expo and a Vogon Poetry Slam! 

Here is the program of the events

(thanks to daveh for the info)

The DNA & H2G2 memorabilia page on facebook

I've just opened a page on facebook for all the Douglas Adams and The Hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy fans who want to share their memorabilia with others. Post the pics there and give us details about your rare DNA & H2G2 stuff.

We're not trekkies or Elvis Presley fans, H2G2 and DNA memorabilia is not massive, but there a are of course a lot of collectible, rare and unique stuff, and after years of collecting stuff, i thought it would be nice to share with other fans.

After all, our motto is Share and enjoy, isn't it?

What to expect in 2010?

In 2009, we got a fast-paced year with the 30th years anniversary of the first book and the publication of “And another thing”, both celebrated with Hitchcon 09, which was the biggest hitchhiker event for a long time.  We were lucky enough also to enjoy the publication of a sequel to  “Last chance to see”  with a new book and  a BBC TV series thanks to Stephen Fry and Mark Carwardine.

So what can we expect in 2010? Well I probably forgot some events and I will edit the post if necessary but there are just two events listed right now :

- Thursday March 11th.  Eighth Douglas Adams Memorial Lecture. Marcus du Sautoy, the mathematician, Oxford professor and host of BBC TV series "The Story of Maths", talking about 42

- "The Doctor and Douglas", a radio documentary about Douglas Adams and Doctor Who (see previous news) in March or April.

What we could hope for :

- The official announcement of a Dirk Gently TV series (at Hitchcon 09,  Douglas Adams agent Ed Victor have confirmed that talks are now in progress with the BBC about a TV-show based on the Dirk Gently novels).

- The announcement of a radio adaptation of "And another thing" by Dirk Maggs (this would be a great idea even if you don’t like Colfer's book).

- “Hitchhiker live” (as seen at the Hitchcon) could become a real show touring across the UK – and why not the world???

- Well, I don’t know if it’s a hope or a fear here, but maybe Penguin will announce a new Hitchhiker book by Eoin Colfer or another writer (Colfer said it would be a great idea to ask some other writers to pen Hitchhiker books – he said Iain Banks, Neil Gaiman and M Atwood could do it). But were the sale figures of “And another thing” that impressive? I don’t think so. And the readers’ reactions to Colfer effort were not that enthusiastic (even if I was not against the project in the first place, I must admit that my  own copy gather dust on my bookshelves, my bookmark stuck on page 190).

- Disney won’t make a second movie,  so it would be cool if they return the rights of Hitchhiker, so we can have again some new stuff and big projects in the Hitchhiker universe (plays, TV series, a second movie but not produced by Disney). Let’s remember that for all the Hitchhiker events in the recent years (the new radio series, Hitchhiker live,…),  there is a big discussion with Disney lawyers.

- ZZ9 Plural Z Alpha (the official H2G2 and Douglas Adams fan club) announces that they will organize their own Hitchcon in 2011 (come on dear ZZ9, you now you want it!)

An unexpected H2G2-tribute by the NASA

It was probably one of the best tribute to Hitchhiker for its 30th anniversary. While the LCROSS spacecraft crashed towards the moon on 9 October, its twitter feed quoted the words of the spermwhale that fell towards its death on the planet of Magrathea:

“And what's this thing coming toward me very fast? So big and flat and round,
4:34 AM Oct 9th from web

it needs a big wide sounding name like 'Ow', 'Ownge', 'Round', 'Ground'!”
4:34 AM Oct 9th from web

“That's it! Ground! Ha! I wonder if it'll be friends with me?”
4:34 AM Oct 9th from web

How cool is that? Thanks NASA! (and thanks to Jan for the info)

Here is LCROSS's twitter page
And here is LCROSS's website

PAN Macmillan press release on H2G2 reissues

On 12 October 1979 the most remarkable book ever to come out of the great publishing corporations of Ursa Minor (and Earth) was made available to humanity – THE HITCHHIKER’S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy went straight to Number 1 in the UK bestseller list and over 15 million have now been sold worldwide. Well over 2 million copies in the UK alone.

Join the nationwide re-read with Pan’s stunning special editions, re-released one month before the publication of And Another Thing… the sixth book in the trilogy by Eoin Colfer.

All five works have been reissued in a stunning new cover look. Each edition contains brilliant new forewords from famous Hitchhiker fans: Russell T Davies, Terry Jones, Simon Brett, Neil Gaiman and Dirk Maggs. A super limited edition first print run of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy features a Don’t Panic Design-it-Yourself cover and limited edition stickers.

On offer are all the versions of each book: paperback at £7.99, audio download, iPhone app and ebook.

In addition, from now until the anniversary on 12th October, www.panmacmillan.com will showcase the stunning new editions of the Hitchhiker trilogy of five, plus the following:

• A DIY cover video, with Marvin decorating his copy of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
• An iGoogle theme so that you can personalise your Google homepage with the new stickers
• Tweets from Marvin the paranoid android on Twitter… “Lovely day today. If you like that sort of thing. Personally I can take it or leave it.” (Or follow him here: www.twitter.com/MarvinsMoan)

Then, in October, bring your towel and raise a glass of Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster for 30 years of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, A Trilogy in Five Parts.

Anniversary celebrations include Hitchcon ’09, the biggest party the unfashionable end of the galaxy has ever seen, on London’s Southbank on Sunday 11th October. Join the largest gathering of Hitchhiker fans ever, watch Hitchhikers live on stage and take part in the mega-signing. For further details see http://www.southbankcentre.co.uk.

New audiobook versions of H2G2 read by Martin Freeman

In April 2005, Pan Macmillian published a new movie tie-in edition of The Hitchhiker’s guide to the galaxy audiobook read by Stephen Fry (who is also well known for being the UK voice for the Harry Potter books and who was of course the narrator in the H2G2 movie). Surprisingly, Pan Macmillan has decided to publish the other four books of the H2G2 trilogy in five parts… read this time by actor Martin Freeman (Arthur Dent in the movie).

“The restaurant at the end of the universe” is already available since the beginning of June. “Life, the universe and everything” will be there soon the 1st September. Other books will follow till the end of the year : “So long and thanks for all the fish” will be there the 6st October and “Mostly harmless” the 1st December.
These versions will be the third version of the Hitchhiker’s guide to the galaxy series audiobooks in English after the abridged reading of the four first books by Stephen Moore (Marvin in the radio series. These audiobooks were Published by Emi Listen For Pleasure on tapes at the begining of the eighties) and the unabridged version by Douglas Adams (this last version is still available in the BBC word for word collection in UK and New Millenium Audio in US).