Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: DVD

Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: An essential in any DVD collection

I loved the books, I enjoyed the radio show and I watched every single episode of the television program so it's hardly surprising that the DVD is a much-watched and important part of my movie collection.

A 'trilogy'

Just knowing that the guide is a 'trilogy' of five books gives you some idea of what to expect from the marvelous mind of Douglas Adams.

Not just a fan

I am old enough to know that the original Ford Prefect was a car. I celebrate Towel Day. I pepper my conversation with quotes. Unlike Arthur Dent, I've always got the hang of Thursdays. I know how a glass of water feels. I know exactly how to learn to fly and of course, I'm fully aware of the meaning of life. (And if you're thinking that I've finally lost it, then you certainly need the DVD for a refresher course).

Oh no, not a movie!

This was my reaction when I heard that it was being made. Yes, I'd watched the TV show but that was more out of curiosity than anything else but a film? Surely, I thought, this is going to be bad. Reason, I thought, must be out to lunch. (Yep, that's a quote). But then I discovered which actors were involved (some of them just for their voices such as Stephen Fry and Helen Mirren - surely these two wouldn't be part of a pot-boiler?)

A fabulous film

As someone who usually hates 'the film of the book' I was more than pleasantly surprised. I was delighted. The producers, writers, actors and everyone involved had captured the very essence of the Hitchhiker's Guide and of Douglas Adams (who is surely one of the funniest writers who ever lived). My only argument would be with the designer who created Marvin - he was a lot more serious-looking in my mind - but I am more than willing to overlook that tiny flaw.

You do know where your towel is, don't you?

By which I mean, you are one of us?

If not, join the elite - the guide fanatics. Celebrate Towel Day with us and marvel at the meaning of life.

If you've managed inexplicably to miss it (and I don't mean the ground, hehe) then here's your chance.

Watch the official trailer to get some idea of the mayhem and madness of this wonderful film. This said, the film is less 'bangy and crashy' than the trailer would have us believe.

I admit that I absolutely adore old movies.I mean the real old classics like Casablanca. Or anything featuring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.

Then there was the wonderful era of spectacular musicals such as West Side Story and South Pacific.

Then, moving ahead, films that were made in my own lifetime which have deservedly become classics in their own right.I'm thinking about films like The Graduate. Then there was Apocalypse Now, The Blues Brothers and the Godfather series.

So a game I often play is trying to decide which films will become the classics of the future and I always add them to my DVD collection. This includes Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, of course.

But speaking about the future, will people still want DVDs? Will there still be a demand? After all,we can watch just about anything on our computers these days.

Well, we have Kindles but books still exist. There was a time when 'experts' thought that the invention of the television meant the end of the movie industry. The radio and recorded music was supposed to herald the end of live music and that didn't happen either..

And on the subject of recorded music, everyone thought the days of vinyl records was over many years ago. The chances are that the DVD and its related equipment will be the same. You've seen the huge revival in the popularity of vinyl - and have you seen the prices in vinyl records (and record players) on eBay?

Yes, the DVD will survive.