The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (TV series) Starship "Heart of Gold", which has been stolen by Ford's semi-cousin Zaphod Beeblebrox, accompanied by Trillian, a young woman who Arthur once met at a party. Ford and Arthur are escorted to the bridge by Marvin the Paranoid Android and meet Zaphod and Trillian. The episode ends after they are introduced, with no cliffhanger. First Broadcast on BBC Two, 19 January 1981 The episode opens with a guide entry explaining the legendary planet of Magrathea, which manufactured planets millions of years ago, until the galactic economy collapsed. Zaphod has been explaining to Ford that he has found the legendary planet
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (novel) The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (novel) The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is the first of five books in the "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" comedy science fiction "trilogy" by Douglas Adams. The novel is an adaptation of the first four parts of Adams' radio series of the same name. The novel was first published in London on 12 October 1979. It sold 250,000 copies in the first three months. The namesake of the novel is "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy", a fictional guide book for hitchhikers (inspired by the "Hitch-hiker's Guide to Europe") written in the form