So long and thanks for all the fish - Douglas Adams

In front of the head stone of Douglas Adams sits a container full of pens left by his fans perhaps in the hope of him somehow being able to write from beyond the grave; or maybe just a mark of respect. The headstone is situated in Highgate Cemetery East not far from the entrance gate on the left of a main pathway. It only costs a few quid to go in and look around and there are a few other famous people buried there such as Jeremy Beadle & Karl Marx.  But let’s get back to this week’s subject.

The headstone where the ashes of Douglas Adams are. I think the pot
contains 42 pens

 

Douglas Adams was born on the 11^th of March in 1952.  Educated at Brentwood and Cambridge, some of his earliest writing was published whilst still at school. After leaving University, he returned to London and was determined to break into television and radio as a writer. After being discovered by Monty Python’s Graham Chapman, the two formed a brief writing partnership. He contributed to a sketch for the album, Monty Python and the Holy Grail and appeared twice in the fourth series of Monty Python’s Flying Circus after which his writing stalled for a while. But it was in 1977 that his work really took off.

The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy first entered his mind whilst laying drunk in a field in Innsbruck, Austria.  He was inspired by his inability to communicate with the townspeople and after wandering around drunk with a book called The Hitchhikers guide to Europe, ended up in a field staring up at the stars. It’s funny you know, writers can be inspired by anything and the mind takes all sorts of pathways to build the story. In the case of Douglas Adams, his mind took an intergalactic walk and provided us with one of the most popular Sci-Fi series of the 20^th Century.

Adams was also responsible for three Doctor Who series where he allowed in jokes from HHGG.  Incidentally, these were never published as books because Adams refused to let another writer publish his work. He also took the secret to the number 42 to the grave, the answer to life, the universe and everything given by the supercomputer Deep Thought.  Why Adams chose the number 42 is a mystery which he shared in the strictest confidence with very few.

The comedic imagination of Douglas Adams is truly phenomenal and The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy is one of my favourite science fiction series.  Whether you’re a fan or not, the stories get you in and they are really funny. So this week I finish by saying that Once upon a time in a galaxy not too far from here, a man who was slightly intoxicated, lay in a field and discovered the ultimate answer to life, the universe and everything.

So long Douglas Adams and thanks for all the fish.