Random Trivia

I got bored earlier today, and started browsing around the Doctor Who website over at the BBC. Now, I'll admit it, I've only ever seen one episode of any of the various incarnations, but I was curious as to how much work Douglas Adams had done with the series.

So I go browsing around, and I spot an interesting bit of trivia:

"Random Fact: Douglas Adams' third HitchHiker's Guide to the Galaxy novel, The Restaurant at the End of the Universe, started life as an abandoned Who script - Doctor Who and the Krikkitmen."

Now, ignoring the fact that the third book is actually 'Life, the Universe, and Everything' (something that I initially missed, and which Nancy had to point out to me), I think that's a fairly interesting bit of trivia. Perhaps more interesting (or less, depending on your point of view), is the fact that it would appear that Mr. Adams reworked a script that did get aired into a novel.

You see, he apparently only worked on one season, and only wrote two scripts, so I was browsing through them when I came across a familiar looking plot summary:

"The Count is revealed as an alien called Scaroth, last of the Jagaroth race. He was splintered in time when his ship exploded above primeval Earth […] His intention is to go back and prevent the destruction of his ship. […] The Doctor realises that the Count must be prevented from carrying out his plan as the explosion of the Jagaroth ship provided the energy that initiated life on Earth."

Anyone who's read the Dirk Gently books should be immediately recognising that, as it's essentially the plot to 'Dirk Gently's Holisitic Detective Agency.'

There, there's your random trivia for the day.