I've been a huge fan of Douglas Adams as long as I can remember – possibly even longer than that. Ever since I started watching the BBC TV series in Primary School and then consequently reading the Hitchiker's "trilogy" in secondary school, I thought Douglas Adams was the very best writer in the history of the universe. Hell, when I broke my wrist and had to have the bones reset, I refused to be wheeled into the operating theatre until an episode of the TV series I had been watching on the ward's TV had finished.
So imagine my delight that a journalist by the name of Neil Gaiman had come along and wrote a biography of Douglas and his work which came out in 1993 (shortly after I had finished secondary school and was enrolled in college). The book was called Don't Panic: Douglas Adams and the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and it gave accounts from the people involved in bringing Hitchhiker's to the many mediums for which it has appeared. It is also one of the funniest books I've ever read.
I decided to revisit the book this week, and still find it extremely funny, entertaining and altogether one of the best factual/biographical books I've come across. It is genuinely laugh-out-loud in places – especially the chapter on Letters. And yet, it is also a poignant reminder that Douglas has gone – so has Geoffrey Perkins – and we are not likely to ever see their like ever again.
That said, Stephen Fry (who is also closely associated with Douglas Adams) is currently undertaking a TV series of Last Chance to See which was originally a radio series presented by Douglas and Mark Carwardine.
It would be nice to see Don't Panic: Douglas Adams and the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy updated with everything (the good and the bad) that has happened since 1993, including the film (which I enjoyed very much, to my surprise) which Douglas had been working on for well over a decade. There is always, however, the Salmon of Doubt which continues the story of Douglas Adams a little bit further..
Douglas Adams is still my favourite author of all time – his work is infinitely re-readable (although I did struggle through Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency initially), and will continue to remain so.
Note: Back in secondary school, I theorized that Slartibartfast probably had a brother. His name would have been WankyFuckBollocks (I blame Ben Elton and Alexi Sayle who were heavy influences on me through their shows on TV at the time) and was the less popular son of the family. The thought was dismissed immediately by my peers, and I could see their point.
Update: You can play an enhanced version of the text adventure game, with graphics supplied by Rod Lord (whom I graciously had the chance to talk to back in my days at MPC as he was working on the MINT TV adverts with MPC doing some of the post-production stuff) over at the BBC's Hitchhiker's mini-site. When asked, "who is Douglas Adams?", the game replied: "That's not a person!".
