What was Douglas' connection with Dorset?
Douglas actually wrote quite a lot of Hitchhiker's in Stalbridge and a lot of his ideas are quite family orientated. For example, there's a planet of biros and that comes from our mum who used to scream all the time, 'Where are the biros?' and I think the 'Don't Panic' came from the family connection as well. He'd written the radio series and he had to write the book - so he came and lived with us at home. I used to come home from school and go into his room, sit on his lap and do some of the typing - he'd since told me that he used to try out things on us. One day I went in and he said "Slartibartfast" and I said "...You can't say that - that's really rude!" - and then he knew he'd got the right tone. He also wrote some of Restaurant At The End Of The Universe and So Long And Thanks For All Fish at home in Dorset. How did Dorset inspire him?
Interestingly, the bulldozer that knocks the house down at the beginning of Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy - Arthur Dent's house - was inspired by a building that was knocked down outside the window where he was writing. He actually got quite a lot of hay-fever when he was here - not that that's got anything to do with anything! I think he just liked being looked after - Mum used to feed him peanut butter sandwiches and was quite maternal to him by saying "...there there, keep going" because he didn't find writing easy. I think being in a family environment was probably quite helpful.
 | | Douglas Adams |
Where do you think he got some of the ideas for the characters from? Was it from family or friends, or a bit of both?
I think it was a bit of both. Our mother is very good at telling stories. The Winnie the Pooh stories were a favourite and she used to do quite a depressed voice for Eeyore and we think we see that in Marvin [the Paranoid Android]. Arthur Dent was famously a friend of his from University. When you go back and read the books you can see the influences - especially of our mum in there - some of the things she used to say. He had such an incredible brain and he would always see things from a different point of view, and often with humour which was just amazing. He was very very funny but could explain things very carefully from an angle that you hadn't thought about but it's also based on real scientific knowledge and he was very intelligent. He was also a pioneer of the Internet. How did he get involved in that?
I don't know exactly how he first got involved but I do remember when I lived with him for quite a long time in London , years and years ago, he had an office right in the top of the house. I went up there and it was dark and I looked inside. It looked like he was surrounded by people who hadn't seen the light of day for a long time and this was his first foray into the world of the Internet - when it was just being used by scientists. I think people were sort of drawn to him. He thought, 'I would like to be able to go onto a computer and find out this or that' and so he inspired people to go and create the software so that he could realise his dreams. A lot of Douglas' family make cameos in the film - how did you get involved?
There's a part in the film where - if you blinked, you'd miss us - we're running around as if the Vogons are coming to destroy the earth. And then, right at the very end, there's a bit with my mum where she's just sitting quite calmly [while Earth is being destroyed] and I'm sitting next door to her on the telephone. And then right at the very very end there's a huge picture of Douglas which is on for only a tiny bit.
 | | Martin Freeman in Hitchhiker's Guide to |
I was actually talking to someone who's out in LA in the movie business and he said that's quite unheard of. This movie has been made with such integrity and love for Douglas. Obviously we don't know for sure if the film's everything that he would have wanted. But when we went to the film set everybody, whether they were working on production design or lighting, had Douglas in their mind and wanted to do the best job for him. He was working on the screenplay when he died, so is the film more than partly his vision?
The screenplay wasn't finished when he died and someone [Karey Kirkpatrick] had to come in and finish it. Douglas found working in LA and the movie world very difficult - I mean it's big cut-throat business there and I think some of his fantastical ideas didn't go down that well to begin with with the movie bosses. That's because they like films where you save the world and everybody falls in love with each other - not movies where the world gets blown up in the first five minutes! So I think they took some convincing. Hitchhikers has got such a cult following and now that there's a film, the popularity isn't going to wane. Why do you think that people have taken the legacy as their own?
There's a huge range of fans. When he died, we had thousands and thousands of e-mails and letters from people whose lives were really affected. I think it was just the way Douglas looked at things. Tonight one of my neighbours is coming along - Charlie, he's eight and a huge fan. I think The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy helps him see that he's not the only one who sees things differently and I think that's really important. There's a lot in there for everybody - if you just want to read it and have a good laugh or if you want to be a bit more scientific about things. It's kind of bitter sweet for the family because he was such a huge part of our lives - as a family we have to come to terms with that. I wish there was a guide which was the Hitchhiker's Guide To Being A Relative Of A Dead Famous Person because it has proved quite tricky and as much as it's great, it just keeps reiterating to us that he's not around to enjoy it. That's quite difficult - very difficult.
 | | The Dorset Premiere |
So, you've obviously seen the film - what did you think?
Yes I've seen the film, but it was in Leicester Square and it was the maddest, surreal experience. I actually found it quite painful. They had big pictures of Douglas and kept talking about the fact that he had died - I watched it in a bit of a state, really. Afterwards people like Martin Freeman [who plays Arthur Dent] who's so lovely was saying "Jane, what do you think?" and I had to say "let me just see it at the Plaza [in Dorchester] where I can relax with my friends and watch it as a movie". I just wouldn't do it justice! I just want to be able to see it more relaxed and less emotional. The plaza is your local cinema and tonight is more of a family affair isn't it?
I'd do anything to support the Plaza! I come to the movies a lot - I love the Plaza! It just felt that a lot of my local friends and their children have really helped me over the last few years to cope with the loss of Douglas. Tonight feels like a really positive way of remembering him - and they are just so excited! And so it means a lot to me. I left Jane to watch the film in peace with her friends and family...but I wanted to know what the experience of watching her brother's film in her local cinema was actually like, so I caught up with her afterwards...
So Jane, what did you think?
I really really enjoyed it. It was really lovely to watch with friends and family around. I could relax, you know! I laughed and it was a bit poignant I could understand why they had to miss bits out and I could understand the new bits they've put in. Its still a bit strange though. It's not like watching a normal movie but the reaction from everyone around was fantastic and that's really buoyed me up! It's still bitter sweet but I feel much more relaxed about it. I think people will really love it! It's a great night out. And I think people who are interested will go and buy the book and get all the intricacies and all the extra bits that you just can't put in a movie. It's lovely! | 
