1981 series
The popularity of the radio series gave rise to a six-episode television series, directed and produced by Alan J. W. Bell, which first aired on BBC 2 in January and February 1981. It employed many of the actors from the radio series and was based mainly on the radio versions of Fits the First to Sixth. A second series was at one point planned, with a storyline, according to Alan Bell and Mark Wing-Davey that would have come from Adams's abandoned Doctor Who and the Krikkitmen project (instead of simply making a TV version of the second radio series). However, Adams got into disputes with the BBC (accounts differ: problems with budget, scripts, and having Alan Bell involved are all offered as causes), and the second series was never made. Elements of Doctor Who and the Krikkitmen were instead used in the third novel, Life, the Universe and Everything.
The main cast was the same as the original radio series, except for David Dixon as Ford Prefect instead of McGivern, and Sandra Dickinson as Trillian instead of Sheridan. [38]
Planned television series
A new television series for Hulu was announced in July 2019. Carlton Cuse was named as the showrunner alongside Jason Fuchs, who will also be writing for the show. The show will be produced by ABC Signature and Genre Arts.[39] The series was set to premiere in 2021. Production was slated to begin in the summer of 2020 and air on Fox in international markets.[40] The series has reportedly been renewed for a second season. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, production on the series has most likely been delayed.[41] However, a production outlet claimed that the series began production in May 2021.[42][43] Hulu receives no updates since then, and Cuse and Fuchs appeared to have moved on.[44]
Other television appearances
Segments of several of the books were adapted as part of the BBC's The Big Read survey and programme, broadcast in late 2003. The film, directed by Deep Sehgal, starred Sanjeev Bhaskar as Arthur Dent, alongside Spencer Brown as Ford Prefect, Nigel Planer as the voice of Marvin, Stephen Hawking as the voice of Deep Thought, Patrick Moore as the voice of the Guide, Roger Lloyd-Pack as Slartibartfast, and Adam Buxton and Joe Cornish as Loonquawl and Phouchg.
