Here’s a tasty item culled from next week‘s Radio Times…
Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency: The Long Dark Tea-Time Of The Soul
Based on the novel by Douglas Adams; Dramatized by Dirk Maggs; Performed by a full cast
Part 1 of 6 – Approx. 30 Minutes [RADIO DRAMA]
Broadcaster: BBC Radio 4
Broadcast: Thursday 2nd October @ 23:00-23:30
In Episode 1 Dirk Gently loses a secretary and Odin sells his soul.
Have a listen to the trailer |REALAUDIO|.
[Thanks Roy!]
Posted by Jesse Willis
Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency
By Douglas Adams; Performed by a full cast
3 CDs – 3 hours [RADIO DRAMA]
Publisher: BBC AUDIO
Published: 2007
ISBN: 1405677430
Themes: / Science Fiction / Fantasy / Comedy / Mystery / Physics / Music /
Most people think of the more famous The Hitch-Hiker’s Guide To The Galaxy when they think of Douglas Adams, but in some ways I prefer his Dirk Gently series because of its more coherent plot and wide-ranging discussions. Of course it is still mainly a rather absurd (but still clever) comedy with a number of sci-fi/fantasy elements and still finds time to explore such diverse subjects as quantum physics, Coleridge’s poetry, computing and Bach. In fact it is described on the book cover as a “thumping good detective-ghost-horror-whodunnit-time-travel-romantic-musical-comedy-epic”.
The story revolves around Richard McDuff who finds himself accused of murdering his boss and seeks help from his old friend Dirk Gently who runs what he calls a “holistic detective” agency. As the investigation unravels events become increasingly strange with ghosts, time travel and an electric monk, but Dirk is convinced of the “fundamental interconnectedness of all things” and is therefore confident of finding the answer.
This drama is directed by the talented Dirk Maggs (who also directed many of the Hitch-Hiker’s radio dramas) and has many well-known British actors. I was a little unsure about the casting of Harry Enfield as Dirk, but he was very good in the part, as was the rest of the cast. For those who are familiar with the novel be warned, there have been a number of changes made, both structurally and in various details – I thought that it was all in keeping with the spirit of the book, but purists may be disappointed. The ending does feel rather rushed and not fully explained (maybe because of time restraints), which may be a bit may be a bit confusing for those who don’t know the story. On the whole though, this is an enjoyable adaptation of a great and much missed author.
Posted by Laura
[editor’s note – This is the first post by our new reviewer Laura, a British expat living in the USA. She comes to us from her Audio Drama Blog, a visit to which will find you returning to again and again, like a moth to a very yummy flame. Moths do like the taste of flames right?]
BBC Radio 4 has splashed up a very pretty new website for their new Dirk Gently series of Radio Dramas. Lots of goodies to be found about the production including a video trailer of the series. Also cool, the all in one nature of the site makes listening to the shows super easy, even for folks not habitating on Albion itself.
Check it out HERE.
Paul S. Jenkins, host of the The Rev Up Review podcast and author of The Plitone Revisionist podiobook writes in to say: “BBC Radio 4 begins a dramatisation in 6 half-hour parts of Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency, starring Harry Enfield [next week]” and that “there’s a big spread in next week’s Radio Times.” Paul goes on to say that “the episodes should be streamed live from the Radio 4 website, and should also be available for six days after transmission via the ‘listen again’ service.” Thanks Paul!
Here’s a pic of the assembled cast:
Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency
Based on the novel by Douglas Adams; Performed by a full cast
6 Episodes of 30 minutes each – 180 minutes [RADIO DRAMA]
Broadcast Begins: Wed. October 3rd 2007 @ 6:30 pm (GMT +0100)
Broadcaster: BBC Radio 4
“Dirk Gently has an unshakeable belief in the interconnectedness of all things but his Holistic Detective Agency’s only success seems to be tracking down missing cats for old ladies. Then Dirk stumbles upon an old friend behaving bizarrely, and he is drawn into a four-billion year old mystery that must be solved if the human race is to avoid immediate extinction.”
Have a listen to the audio trailer for the show |MP3|!
Back in March we told you about the three new Douglas Adams radio series that will be broadcast on BBC Radio 4, beginning with Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency in October 2007. We now have more info, English comedian Harry Enfield will be starring as the series lead, Dirk Gently, in the upcoming trilogy of radio dramas adapting the Adam’s series of Fantasy / Comedy / Mystery novels. The complete cast list and more details can be found HERE.
This should raise an interested eyebrow! It seems that BBC Audiobooks (UK), has made a deal with Radio Drama legend Dirk Maggs, and crew at the newly formed Perfectly Normal Productions to create “compelling, high quality audio entertainment for bite-size delivery direct to home computers, portable media players and mobile phones.” In other words, podcasts!
Dirk Maggs sez: “Podcasting should be so much more than a platform for stand up comedy and audio diarists. Video on a handheld devices will never rival the storytelling experience of a big screen. But we can fill the gap. In our hands mobile entertainment bypasses the optic nerve and hotwires the imagination, with a widescreen experience you can enjoy anywhere – in the car, the train, or on the sofa with your eyes shut.”
Perfectly Normal Productions‘ initial focus will be on original material by leading Science Fiction and graphic novel authors of today, mixed with “much-loved titles including cult British comic characters” such as The Steel Claw. Also resurrected in a new series of tongue-in-cheek adventures will be the legendary British detective Sexton Blake, featuring Simon Jones, the star of The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy.
The releases are planned to start sometime in 2007.