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Hitchhiker's Guide DVD to be released on January 28 196

Posted by chrisd from the fakey-looking-second-head dept.
hitchhacker writes "It looks like The BBC series version of 'Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy' is being released on DVD January 28, 2002. 'disc set contains all six episodes from the classic BBC sci-fi comedy as well 10 minutes of additional footage which was cut to acheive the 30 minute run time. Also included are a few additional features - making of, deleted scenes, interviews and more.'" CD: Word has it that this is a region 2 dvd.
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Hitchhiker's Guide DVD to be released on January 28 More

Hitchhiker's Guide DVD to be released on January 28

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  • Region 2? (Score:2, Informative)

    by Anonymous Coward
    What's that? [elby.org]
    • Unfortunately it won't work on my PlayStation 2 or Toshiba DVD player... :/

      • Re:Region 2? (Score:4, Informative)

        by Amanset ( 18568 ) on Sunday January 20, 2002 @05:27AM (#2871703) Homepage
        Then check out DVD Region X for the PS2. Older versions came with a special memory card, newer versions just take up space on a standard memory card. You boot from a special disc, then it prompts you to choose your region. You select it, the disc tray opens, you replace the disc, push in the tray and then select the DVD in the browser.

        It is simple and it works. I use it all the time to view R1 DVDs with my R2 PS2. Your TV has to be capable of outputting the PAL source though, which is one area where Europe has an advantage. Our TVs these days are almost always PAL/NTSC compatible, whereas US TVs rarely have PAL compatibility.

        You have to get an NTSC version of DVD Region X. I know it exists, but I don't know where you buy it. The PAL version is widely available and is made by Datel Electronics.

        Finally, you can plug in codes from the website [dvdregionx.com], if you update your PS2 DVD driver version.
        • Except that the US PS2 can't play PAL DVDs; PAL is of a higher resolution than NTSC, and the US version of the console doesn't have a big enough screen buffer apparently. Rather pissed off my mate who imported.. :)

    • Re:Region 2? (Score:3, Insightful)

      by AntiNorm ( 155641 )
      Again I ask this: why are they region protecting DVDs of things that haven't been in any international theaters for a loooong time anyway? The MPAA is demonstrating quite clearly here that their argument for region protection (skew releases so a particular region can't have it on DVD when it is still showing in the theaters) is a lie, and that their real reason for having region coding is different.
    • I was recently lucky enough to find the Laserdisc set last month for $25 at an antiques store I check about twice a year. (They usually go for $50 or so on ebay.) Region codes? What region codes? And it's the NTSC version, and supposedly includes those same deleted scenes, too.

  • And how do regions... (Score:2, Insightful)

    by fintler ( 140604 )
    affect the average /. reader? All of our dvd players ignore region codes ;P
  • I remeber seeing this on video ages ago. My favorite were the Vogons- proof that men in rubber suits look like men in rubber suits even when they're shouting "Resistance is Useless." IMHO one of the world's greatest B movies ever made... Combined with *an interview with Douglas Adams* and whatnot, it'll be worth every penny of the ~US$40... I just hope ThinkGeek manages to import it, or I can find it on eBay... :D

    And it's too bad they're doing reigon crap for this. Don't they know that H2G2 is an international phenomenon with millions of fans? Or are they going to release a special 'americanized' version? >:(

    • Re:This I gotta see (Score:3, Insightful)

      by inquisitor ( 88155 )
      The disc, like most BBC DVDs, will probably be dual region 2 and 4; so the Australians will be able to see it.

      Different companies have different rights areas; the BBC will want to release a R1 version for NTSCers out there, but it's not such a high priority for a company which is resoundingly Region 2. Also, BBC discs are released by Fox in the States, who won't want their area treaded upon. Complain to them.

      Maybe also the rights to HHGTTG are owned by someone else; "Monty Python's Flying Circus" and "The Avengers" are owned by A&E, for example.

      Now you get all the problems we have every time something cool is released in the States that we can't get; e.g. "Almost Famous" bootleg cut, Monty Python series box sets, Criterion "Life of Brian" and so on. That's why a lot of British people (including me, and most of uk.media.dvd) have their players modded. You should too, even if it's just a DVD-ROM drive [club-internet.fr] and DVD player software [inmatrix.com] (or a H+ hardware card [hplus.hu].) Enjoy a whole new world!

  • Remember the movie? (Score:5, Funny)

    by YouAreFatMan ( 470882 ) on Sunday January 20, 2002 @03:13AM (#2871521) Homepage
    I remember, the first 10 minutes were the worst. The next 10 minutes, they were the worst. The next 10 minutes after that were even more horrible. After that, it went into a bit of a decline...

    • If only Douglas Adams had lived to see... (Score:1, Funny)

      by Anonymous Coward
      ...these DVDs, including the 10 mins. of cut footage!

      Also, if he'd only lived to see the leader of the free world being assaulted by a pretzel! How pathetic and bizarre, yet hilarious...it would appeal to his twisted, brilliant sense of humor.

      Of course, Adams would have known that there is more to the story than meets the eye [subintsoc.net]...

  • HGTTG Saved My Life (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Agamous Child ( 538344 ) on Sunday January 20, 2002 @03:14AM (#2871525) Homepage Journal
    I was a 5th Grader who had read a few things, you know read some books on cool stuff, had a z80 computer, the basic programming guide for the rest of us, etc. but I had little interest in school, I was a beach-bum loser. This friend of my Mom, he hands me this dog-earred paper-back book with a black cover and a little green sphere man sticking his tongue out at me... the guy, Dennis, tells me "Hey read this, you WILL like it." I was like, "sure, whatever".. I read the first few pages, and I couldn't stop reading.. I can honestly say I have about 4 copies of almost every other DA book, mostly first edition hardcovers. Big deal, everyone does? The thing was, this guy who gave me the book, pretty much the same day said to me that I should go to school more often, and I should really (in his words) "do something with your life." Maybe it was the book, maybe it was DA, maybe it was nothing, but certainly, it tied together and I started to go to school... I saw all of the HGTTG episodes on local PBS here in the states, and they are hilarious... I highly suggest them. They gave me a great cast to play out the rest of the books in my head with.. uh.. anyway.. I like them.. ALOT.
  • Dying to get my hands on this baby ... I treasure the books, and treasure my MP3's of the original radio series. Adams was a truly great writer and he is missed. I just hope the series (which I have never seen and haven't even read that much about) lives up to the material.

    My favorite was the poor, pathetic depressed robot. Some days I take after him just a wee bit too much :)

    42!!!!

    • Re:Whooohooo!!! (Score:2, Informative)

      by choco ( 36913 )
      >My favorite was the poor, pathetic depressed robot. Some days I take after him just a wee bit too much :)

      According to DNA, Marvin (the Robot) was heavily based on a real person - the script writer Andrew Marshall. "2point4 Children" (UK TV series) is probably his best known work.

      You can see the rest listed at imdb.com [imdb.com]
  • I believe that it's possible to get DVD playing software to do both, and I'm *sure* there are PAL -> NTSC converters availible. And if that fails, you can have a professional do it; I once had a European tape converted for around $30. Check your local camera shops; I know that Seattle residents can try Omega Photo.
    • Any decent DVD player (all Pioneers, and probably 90% of the rest of them) will be able to convert between PAL and NTSC (the 90% figure is a wild guess, but it SHOULD be 90%+ since the electronics to do this cost less than the cardboard box the player comes in). However, in the Pioneer case and many others, this results in a 50 Hz "almost NTSC" signal from PAL, or a 60 Hz "almost PAL" signal from NTSC. The frequency stays, but the color system is converted.

      When trying to watch this slightly off-standard signal on a pre-1970 TV, the picture will get squeezed or stretched vertically. However, when you watch it on a modern $100+ TV, the picture will come out just right.

      • Re:Regarding the PAL vs. NTSC (Score:4, Informative)

        by uglyduckling ( 103926 ) on Sunday January 20, 2002 @05:02AM (#2871673) Homepage
        DVDs don't need PAL to NTSC convertors. The whole point is that they don't conform to any type of picture standard other than aspect ratio. It's the job of the DVD player to render the picture in PAL, NTSC, SECAM, SVGA or whatever standard you care to mention. The aspect ratio obviously depends on the physical screen, but can be corrected by adding black bars at the top or sides of the picture or by stretching if the view prefers.

        This is why there is so much dicussion about the region coding - because there is no reason why any DVD cannot be played anywhere in the world, the 'region coding' has been added because the film industry has got very used to controlling when and where a product can be distributed by choosing what picture standard to release it in. By delaying PAL releases they have been able to release films later in UK cinemas without the cinema release clashing with tape sales and therefore decreases losses if the film is a flop.

        I would guess that the BBC have decided to delay marketing this new DVD in the US, and so are pragmatically taking advantage of the region coding to see how it does over here first.

        The only time a PAL/NTSC convertor might be useful is if a foreign DVD player were imported in order to play DVDs from another region, which at 100 dollars/pounds, it's quite a viable thing to do. Of course, here in the UK many off-the-shelf players will play any region.....

        • Re:Regarding the PAL vs. NTSC (Score:4, Informative)

          by Markus Landgren ( 50350 ) on Sunday January 20, 2002 @05:24AM (#2871694) Homepage
          DVDs don't need PAL to NTSC convertors. The whole point is that they don't conform to any type of picture standard other than aspect ratio.

          ...and of course frame rate. Even though the signal on the DVD is neither in NTSC nor PAL formats, the DVDs are made for either NTSC or PAL. The fact that the frame rate is the only thing that really separates the two types makes it an even bigger scandal that some players can't output both NTSC and PAL from any type of disc.

  • Region 2 DVD??? (Score:3, Funny)

    by tswinzig ( 210999 ) on Sunday January 20, 2002 @03:27AM (#2871535) Journal
    Beg pardon? Surely you mean region 42?

    (No, and don't call me Shirley.)

  • extras (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Transient0 ( 175617 ) on Sunday January 20, 2002 @03:27AM (#2871536) Homepage
    the list of extras is impressive, but it would have been really nice to see:

    1. text of the original novels.
    2. audio if the original radio show.

    The mini-series was alright, entertaining at least. The radio show on the other hand was brilliant.
    • audio if the original radio show.

      Indeed! I had the original radio shows on tape for a long time (taped from the radio), but the tapes have slowly been either chewed by tape decks or lost. The radio show had a significantly different plot in places... I prefer it.

    • Re:extras (Score:4, Interesting)

      by ewhac ( 5844 ) on Sunday January 20, 2002 @08:08AM (#2871817) Homepage Journal

      ...it would have been really nice to see:
      1. text of the original novels.

      There is no "authoratative" version of the story. Douglas Adams kept making small changes to it every time it was published in a new medium. Even different BBC radio broadcasts were slightly different. I remember reading somewhere that he did this deliberately just to mess with the fans' heads, but I can't locate the reference. I daresay he would have insisted the DVD go out with yet another minor tweak to the story line.

      Here's a quote from the Introduction to The Original Hitchhiker Radio Scripts:

      "The people who heard the show on BBC World Service will have heard a slightly different version from the original BBC Radio 4 transmission. Those people who heard the BBC transcription service disc will have heard another version, and those who heard the commercial records will have heard another version again. Those people who saw the television show will have seen another different version, and those people who have read the books will have come across yet another different version."

      -- Geoffrey Perkins

      Schwab

      • There is no "authoratative" version of the story. Douglas Adams kept making small changes to it every time it was published in a new medium. Even different BBC radio broadcasts were slightly different. I remember reading somewhere that he did this deliberately just to mess with the fans' heads, but I can't locate the reference

        When he spoke at Oxford he said it was because he got bored writing the same story over again.

        One change in the radio series was the change of the name of the worst poet from Niel Milne-Johnson (Adam's ex-roommate who wrote poetry) to Alice Jennings. His friend thought that being known for writing poetry worse than Vogon would be bad for his career.

    • You can get the text of almost any book at Project Gutenberg (http://promo.net/pg/). It's an organization dedicated to transferring as much literature as possible into a plain vanilla text format.

      • You can get the text of almost any book at Project Gutenberg (http://promo.net/pg/)

        Yeah, but they won't take anything first published on or after 1923 because of the Bono Act [everything2.com]. You'll have to request it in one of the alt.binaries.e-book groups.

    • you can buy the radio shows on cd from the online BBC shop [bbcshop.com], where they have an entire hhgttg department [bbcshop.com].
    • Well, it was repeated on Radio 4 last September... I wish I'd recorded it, but I missed the first episode...

      You can always buy the series from the BBC [bbc.co.uk] - but I'd spend the money on the Lord of The Rings CD set instead. The radio series of that was, well, superlative. It too is being rebroadcast (Radio 4, Sat 2.30-3.30pm, GMT of course) [bbc.co.uk].

      Tom.

  • why on earth? (Score:3, Interesting)

    by neurojab ( 15737 ) on Sunday January 20, 2002 @03:27AM (#2871537)
    Why would the the BBC region encode a circa 1990(?) miniseries? The purpose of region encoding is to ensure that a movie leaving US markets can be "staged" into foriegn markets, forcing DVD sales to be after film sales to avoid home viewing cutting into theater reciepts. Region encoding old TV material serves no purpose other than to simultaneously reduce sales and annoy customers. Why would the BBC want to stop sales of this DVD to the US? The math is simple...more sales means more money when there are no greater revenue streams to cut into. If the people at the BBC are half as smart as their accents make them seem, this DVD will be region-free ;)

    • Re:why on earth? (Score:5, Insightful)

      by forged ( 206127 ) on Sunday January 20, 2002 @04:11AM (#2871612) Homepage Journal

      The purpose of region encoding is to ensure that a movie leaving US markets can be "staged" into foriegn markets

      You're forgetting that other countries produce film material, too. The region coding in this case is to ensure EU marget gets served first before anyone else can get it.

      Region encoding [...] serves no purpose other than to simultaneously reduce sales and annoy customers.

      I couldn't agree more with this statement.
      Now imagine that this would be the case for you almost every time a movie comes out on DVD. Annoying, eh?

      Why would the BBC want to stop sales of this DVD to the US? The math is simple...more sales means more money ...

      Your point is also valid viewed in the other perspective. Why would the US firms possibly want EU and other zones to wait sometimes 6 months or 1 year, to get the material on DVD ? See all the points above.. Makes no sense to me.

      • Re:why on earth? (Score:2, Insightful)

        by lcorc79 ( 549464 )
        The region coding in this case is to ensure EU marget gets served first before anyone else can get it.

        Granted, the original post was somewhat American-centric. However, I think his point still holds. This is not a film being released first to theatres and then to DVD/VHS, it is an old series finally making it to DVD. The "staging" he mentioned was referring to selling all the theatre tickets you can first, THEN selling all the rentals/DVDs/etc. The regions allow them to do this in all the various markets (even though the film isn't released to the theatres at the same time in various markets).

        Now imagine that this would be the case for you almost every time a movie comes out on DVD. Annoying, eh?

        Well, I agree that it's annoying, but as much as I hate to admit it I can sort of see the logic for Region encoding for films . I still don't like it, but I see the logic. Again, we weren't talking about movies here though -- just an old TV series. You had a point mentioning that the same holds true in when other countries are forced to wait when a US region DVD comes out -- but in most cases those are for films. The logic of region-encoding an old TV series simply escapes me -- no matter what region it's from.

        Ah well, I still say ... 42.

        • Re:why on earth? (Score:2, Insightful)

          by benjymous ( 69893 )
          The whole "why region TV shows" issue is something that confuses me too. Recently I bought 2 BBC DVD box sets, Fawlty Towers, and The Blue Planet (a documentary series about the sea)

          Now Blue Planet is region 0 (i.e. will play on any player), but Fawlty Towers is region 2.

          The only possible answer I could think of was that Blue Planet was a joint BBC / Discovery Channel production, and the Discovery Channel wanted to sell it outside Europe

        • Re:why on earth? (Score:5, Insightful)

          by Zeinfeld ( 263942 ) on Sunday January 20, 2002 @11:42AM (#2872231) Homepage
          Well, I agree that it's annoying, but as much as I hate to admit it I can sort of see the logic for Region encoding for films . I still don't like it, but I see the logic.

          The purpose of region encoding, from start to finish was to support differential pricing. The story about movie releases is a smokescreen. If the industry execs. stated that the purpose of zone encoding was to allow them to maintain DVD prices in Europe that were double those in the US they would end up in jail.

          In fact they may still end up with a huge fine. The EU commission is investigating the DVD zone encoding scam and unlike the US regulators they are not easily bought off with Enron sized campaign contributions.

        • even though the film isn't released to the theatres at the same time in various markets

          This is become less true all the time. Big films are now almost always released simultatinously in all the major markets.

    • Re:why on earth? (Score:1, Interesting)

      by Anonymous Coward
      The BBC may have sold the rights to Hitchikers for non-UK/Europe regions back in the 80s, which may stop them doing an R1 release currently.
    • The purpose of region encoding is to ensure that a movie leaving US markets can be "staged" into foriegn markets, forcing DVD sales to be after film sales to avoid home viewing cutting into theater reciepts.


      Different companies sometimes have the distribution rights in different markets. This is another use of region encoding.

    • That is what they would want you to think.
      The reason for regions is not so much to prevent movies originating in the USA from reaching foreign viewers on DVD before the movies get there as much as prevent the foreigners from buing the US version much cheaper than the blatant overpriced region n+1 version (or is it the other way around? DVDs sold in countires with lower personal income must be sold cheaper, so the americans could reimport them cheaper?).

      That is, it is a marketing ploy to AVOID a global market.

      /RS
    • Perhaps making it viewable in non-domestic regions could be construed as making it available to non-domestic markets, making the BBC liable for additional licensing fees, royalties to actors, or what have you. Or perhaps locking out other regions gives the BBC the option of licensing it through another distributor for overseas markets.
    • The "Heart of Darkness" DVD (another old BBC series, from approximately the same era as the H2G2 show - around the early 80s) is region 0.

      I've not checked my other BBC DVDs to see if this is an exception or not. 8)

      Anyway, if it is a Region 2, why not buy a multi region DVD player like we have to in Europe to watch Region 1 DVDs?

      On a slightly different note, I've recently noticed a significant increase in the number of region 0 DVDs being released, so maybe there is (at least) a little hope for the future.

      Not that this helps here, of course!
  • Gosh, I guess that means I just won't be able to play it here in the US, with my US-bought DVD-ROM drive, huh?

    • Re:Region two? (Score:5, Funny)

      by tunah ( 530328 ) <sam@kr a y u p . com> on Sunday January 20, 2002 @03:38AM (#2871555) Homepage
      Yeah, finally the region coding is effective. They've managed to stop you buying a copy to play at home (they frown on 'fair use'), and forced you to download a DVD rip from kazaa.

    • Re:Region two? (Score:2, Funny)

      by forged ( 206127 )

      Heh. For once you guys in the US are suffering the consequences of this stupid region coding which was forced into the DVD standard. Now see how it feels to be on the other side of the atlantic for a change.

      It's so often us (outside the US) which suffer from region coding, since virtually everything comes on region 1 before other regions, when at all.

      rotfl :->

      • Was I really that droll? My post was intended to be funny. I can watch (and copy) DVDs from any region, with or without CSS. I can strip macrovision, compress to MPEG4, and archive any video DVD I've come across. I can do all this on commodity hardware I assembled myself, under a free OS, using free software in a lonely shack in North Dakota powered with solar panels I bought as government surplus with cash in Missouri.*

        * That too, was an attempt at humor. Please laugh, or at least chuckle or grin.
        • No hard feelings were meant either... Everybody can rip DVDs and make DivX, but that defeats the purpose of having DVDs (collector items), right..? :)
    • Hah! Finally the real reason behind region coding becomes clear! All the time we thought it was a conspiracy by the movie industry, but now it's clear that the US government is behind this! Can't have American minds poisoned with this Euro-commie garbage ("Hitchhiking" is bad, and "Red Dwarf" must be a Russian guy)! The people who understand anything about region coding are beyond salvation, they have been exposed to too much information already.
      • The biggest problem with that zones is that having a Zone2 DVD does not mean that we will enjoy subtitles in French, German, Spanish, etc...

        So, there is _no benefit at all_ for the consumer, only a limit for them.

    • Re:Region two? (Score:2, Informative)

      by cheezehead ( 167366 )
      Well, correct me if I'm wrong, but there are two types of players that could solve the region problem (I'm not talking about DivX, or ripping or whatever, I don't know anything about that).

      First, you can get a "codeless" DVD player. These things ignore the region coding. They're a little expensive , though. But (!), the movie industry doesn't like these things, so they started releasing DVD's with a slightly modified region 1 code. Some of these DVD's will not play on a codeless player!

      I'm not endorsing any vendors, but doing a search on Google with "codeless DVD" gives several links to places where you can buy these players. Usually they sell solutions for the PAL/NTSC (often built into the codeless players) and 110V/220V issue too.

      Second, you can get a "multi-region" player. It just recognizes the region code, and adjusts itself as needed. A friend of mine has one of these. I think they can play any region DVD. Alas, they are also substantially more expensive than regular players.

      A Google search for "multi-region DVD" also results in several links, however, the companies selling these seem to be mainly in the UK or Australia.
      • Codeless players aren't expensive - mine was one of the cheapest ones available about a year ago (REC R800C - £180). And it easily plays RCE 'protected' DVDs too.
  • liked the radio broadcasts (kazaa rules!) and turned the BBC crap off after about 1 and 1/2 hours. That drek is unwatchable. This coming from someone who likes Red Dwarf! The special effects are worse than cheesy, the acting wasn't, the costumes were rotten and they seemed to change stuff simply for the sake of changing it. All in all, to say I was dissapointed would be an understatement... Save your money and spend it on that new Holy Grail dvd....
  • For some reason, it just seems bizarre that BBC would region-code something. I thought they were legit.

  • Region codes cut both ways... (Score:4, Insightful)

    by JScarpace ( 463675 ) on Sunday January 20, 2002 @03:53AM (#2871574) Homepage
    The Hitchhiker's DVD may only be region 2 for now, but on the other side of the coin, the March release of the Star Trek: The Next Generation season 1 box set will be region 1 (U.S.) only.

    How about a trade? We get the BBC to release the six episodes of HHG in region 1 over here, and we'll give them 26 episodes of ST:TNG for region 2 in return. I think we'd come out better on the deal, but hopefully the Brits will be too busy watching the ST:TNG episodes to notice. :-)

  • Hardly worth waiting for (Score:1, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward
    On DVD ? what for ?

    I have owned the BBC series on VHS for years and the tapes slowly gather dust.

    The production is cheap and outdated, moves far too slowly, has very few entertaining spots, and the acting is not that great either.

    The original radio sketches were far better.

    Oh yes, and Trillian is blonde.

  • I'm so happy to hear this! Now I can finally retire the old VHS tape I have of the series that my dad taped off a PBS marathon. It was starting to wear thin.
  • It's available for purchase on ShopBBC:

    http://www.bbcshop.com/bbc_shop/default.asp?shop =b bc&dept_id=101

    They do state that in fact this is a region 2 DVD. I imagine if enough Americans wrote the BBC to complain, they would change this. That's a lot of revenue to give up!

    • Re:available on shopBBC (Score:1, Informative)

      by Anonymous Coward
      But that site also says that the "Blue Planet" DVD is Region 2, when in fact I have a copy sitting in my hand, and the box and the disc both say Region 0.

      Americans - you will be able to get this for your players.
      • Americans - you will be able to get this for your players.

        My guess is that it will become available under a different distributor in the US.

        But, we're Americans, and we want it NOW! (That's what it means to be an American, non?)
    • I just wrote a feedback to BBCShop explaining that where I grew up, I had access to the TV series via a PBS station. That's what got me started on the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. I also mentioned that I had purchased this on VHS a long time ago, but the tape has long since died from age and tape wear. :-(

      I explained I was really looking forward to purchasing a DVD of one of my favourite (spelling intentional, when in Rome...) series, but was vastly disappointed to learn that they had chosen to encode it for Europe (region 2) only.

      I wonder what kind of response I'll get...

      If I get one in a timely fashion, I'll follow up my own post and place the information in this thread.

      If you go to write, don't forget to site the ISBN number for this product, specifically: ISBN: BBCDVD1092
      • I got my reply from the BBC regarding region 1 releases.

        From: Laura Palmer address_removed@bbc.co.uk
        Subject: RE: This is feedback the BBC Web Shop
        Date: Mon, 21 Jan 2002 15:04:37 -0000

        "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" will be released on DVD in North
        America in late April.
  • Knowing our luck, it'll only be available through a pledge drive. Sigh... wonder if it comes with a canvas tote bag?

  • BBC DVD region coding (Score:5, Informative)

    by e6003 ( 552415 ) on Sunday January 20, 2002 @05:00AM (#2871671) Homepage
    BBC DVD releases are usually regions 2 and 4. The reason for this (more specifically, no region 1) is because BBC Worldwide handles the marketing of BBC video releases in the UK and Australia/NZ. However for the US it sub-licences the rights and BBC video releases are issued by Warner, who decide their own release schedule. It's because of this contract that the discs employ region coding to "prevent" them being played in the US. Although you can import the release and use a region-free player, remember you will need a PAL (or dual-standard) TV set and these are AFAIK less common in the US than they are in Europe! This applies even if using a computer DVD drive to play the disc, unless you just want to view it on your monitor.
    • The computers I've seen that have a video-out(Composite or S-Video) usually allow for the output to TV to be set to either NTSC or PAL.

      • The computers I've seen that have a video-out(Composite or S-Video) usually allow for the output to TV to be set to either NTSC or PAL.

        Yes, but they also allow apps (such as DVD player) to override such a setting. Otherwise, the drivers probably won't get Microsoft's signature. I haven't read anything important about this exact issue, but if MS Secure Audio Path [pineight.com] is any indication of the direction Microsoft is heading for the operating system that will come with your next PC...

        Besides, the telecine method is different. With a 50Hz video technology like PAL, they just speed the 24Hz film up 4% and draw each film frame into two video fields. In 60Hz formats such as NTSC or PAL-M, they draw each frame for three fields, then two, then three, then two... I doubt that most DVD players can convert NTSC telecine to PAL telecine or vice versa, so they just output the format that most closely matches the encoded frame-rate.

    • Re:BBC DVD region coding (Score:3, Insightful)

      by Anonymous Coward
      Most modern European TV's can handle both PAL-50Hz, PAL-60Hz and NTSC pretty easily. I get quite a bit of Region 1 anime imported from the US and they all play great on my chipped Pioneer DV444K.

      As far as I'm aware, if your dvd player can output in plain RGB and your TV can support 60Hz RGB input, then you should be able to watch any format video on it.

      I realise thats a bit of a problem in the US where most TV's have only [video + L audio + R audio] inputs. If only you all had the all encompassing SCART connector on all your TV's!!!

      "If you're not scared, then you're not going fast enough"
      -
      http://www.btinternet.com/~megatron

    • I know that I, for one, am really looking forward to seeing HHGttG dubbed into American, just like the Region 1 releases of "Walking With Dinosaurs" and "The Planets". Enough of those stuffy British accents, I say!

  • Go get the Mega-Adams.tar (Score:4, Informative)

    by thrysoee ( 530539 ) on Sunday January 20, 2002 @05:34AM (#2871709)
    I made the obvious Google [google.com] and found this treat:
    The Douglas Adams media archive is presented here by the wi2600.org groups for your enjoyment. This allso is to serve as a tribute to Mr. Adams's great, but suddely shortened carrer. Those who have not heard his voice, and those who know it well, will both enjoy having this material available. We will miss him! For convienience, you may download the "Mega-Adams.tar" which is a simple tarball of the entire Adams collection.
    Go get your copy of the Mega-Adams.tar [wi2600.org], enjoy!

  • Babelfish Technology (Score:3, Funny)

    by Nathdot ( 465087 ) on Sunday January 20, 2002 @07:13AM (#2871767)
    Thanks to new Babelfish technology there will be no multi-language versions of the HHGTTG DVD.

    Just insert the DVD and let the fish do the rest.

    :)

  • I'd get this but... (Score:2, Insightful)

    by edo-01 ( 241933 )
    ... it's terrible. Even allowing for the early 80's BBC sci-fi show "look", ie; shot on betacam under lighting that looks like it was lifted from a bus station.

    The sum total of Ed Bye's "direction" seems to have been to just stick the camera in the middle of the set and make the actors run through long scenes in one (often awkward and badly timed) take. It's like watching a stageplay that hasn't been rehearsed, only a stageplay wouldn't have been lit with 40,000 flourescent tubes. Even worse is that they changed Trillian from a no-nonsense scientist type into a squeaking brainless gangster-moll. I'm not sure who was behind that decision but her performence alone is bad enough to make you want to shove a fork in your eye. There's a few points that are kinda ok, like the sequence on the Vogon ship, but overall it's a mess.

    I grew up with and love the radio series and the books. I really want to see this as a show/movie done right, and I only hope that DA's death won't derail the plans for the movie.

    • I grew up with and love the radio series and the books.

      The added advantage with the radio series is that it is made available on region free media, ie CD and audio-tape.

    • am i the only one that purchased the series on VHS because of the content and not the production quality?

      seriously, it's bad. laughable. almost as if it was done intentionally to make the humo(u)r have to carry the series, which it did. admirably.

      anyhow, don't make a big fuss about how awful the directing or photography was. if you were a fan of Dr. Who, you'd think HHGttG was a Bergman film by comparison...

  • Off-Topic: The Whale (Score:5, Funny)

    by ewhac ( 5844 ) on Sunday January 20, 2002 @08:27AM (#2871825) Homepage Journal

    This is easily one of my most favorite of Adams' explanations on where he got an idea. This is a quote from The Original Hitchhiker Radio Scripts:

    "Ah yes, the whale. Well, this came about as a result of watching an episode of a dangerously insane TV detective show called
    Cannon [imdb.com] in which people got shot the whole time for incredibly little reason. They would just happen to be walking across the street, and they would simply get killed, regardless of what their own plans for the rest of the day might have been.

    "I began to find the sheer arbitrariness of this rather upsetting, not just because characters were getting killed, but because nobody ever seemed to care about it one way or another. Anybody who might have cared about any of these people -- family, friends, even the postman -- was kept firmly offstage. There was never any, 'Good night sweet Prince,' or, 'She should have died hereafter,' or even, 'Look you bastard, I was meant to be playing squash with this guy tonight,' just bang, clear them out of the way, on to the next. They were merely, excuse me, Cannonfodder.

    "I thought I'd have a go at this. I'd write in a character whose sole function was to be killed for the sake of a small detail in the plot, and then damn well make the audience care about it, even if none of the other characters in the story did. I suppose I must have succeeded because I received quite a number of letters saying how cruel and callous this section was -- letters I certainly would not have received if I had simply mentioned the whale's fate incidentally and passed on. I probably wouldn't have received them if it had been a human either."
    -- Douglas N. Adams

    Schwab

  • Patience, Region 1'ers, Patience (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Masem ( 1171 ) on Sunday January 20, 2002 @09:51AM (#2871932)
    Using "The Prisoner" and "Dr. Who" as previous examples of BBC releases, we'll probably see a Region 1 DVD in about 6 months. Both of the forementioned series (in the case of DW, various installments) were out in the UK and other Region 2 before Region 1, typically between 4 to 8 months.

    Given that we also have MP, Blackadder, and Faulty Towers now out on R1 DVD sets, I very much doubt BBC is *stupid* enough to not put out a HHGTTG R1 DVD.

  • why bother (Score:2, Insightful)

    by BiggyP ( 466507 )
    whats the point? doesn't everyone realise that the TV series was absoloutely dreadful next to the radio4 dramatisation and of course the books, and all the hardware you need for that is a cassete player and imagination.
  • Oh geez...why. I cannot figure it out...there isn't even a sound business reason.

    Note to whoever: Release it region 1 in a timely fashion (i.e. like how about at the same time) and I would buy this. Release it late, it will get ripped and distributed all over the net, and I won't feel particularly guilty about copying it. You will never be able to prove that you lost money from me, because you will have to prove that I would have bought a region 2 dvd player and your flic.

    You know what? Pretty much goes the same for over seas. I don't think that other countries should be deprived of our cinema just because you are staging releases all over.

  • It's only fair (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Paul Boven ( 211567 ) on Sunday January 20, 2002 @12:27PM (#2872396)
    After all, it's the Americans and especially their movie-industry that came up with this insane region-system. And the main reason they got away with it is that their domestic audience would get the releases first anyway. So I think it's only fair that some Americans get to experience what it is like to be on the 'wrong' side of the region system, and I hope it happens more often. Who knows, they might even learn something from it. I mean, you can only get shafted by the big corporations so often in return for brown-nosing them, somebody is going to get the hint, right?

    I'm not trolling, I'm just bitter.

  • This is terrible!!! (Score:3, Funny)

    by toupsie ( 88295 ) on Sunday January 20, 2002 @12:48PM (#2872514) Homepage
    Holy Zarqoun's Knees! You mean I won't be able to use this on my Region 1 DVD player? Belgium!

  • I've seen this. (Score:3, Informative)

    by JimPooley ( 150814 ) on Sunday January 20, 2002 @02:19PM (#2872895) Homepage
    It's a two DVD set, where DVD 1 contains the six episodes of the TV series in their longest cut available, coming to 3hrs and 20 mins. The DVD includes "Production Notes" which come up like subitles and are snippets of information about the scene you're watching.
    The second DVD is stuffed to the gills with extras, some of which have never been seen before.
    It's a tremendous package and an essential purchase for all Hitch-Hiker fans.

  • Towel Day (Score:2, Informative)

    by mgandhi2 ( 455480 )
    Remember, May 25th is Towel Day in honor of Douglas Adams. On this day, you can carry a towel with you everywhere you go. If your boss rips into you during the day, just cover your head with the towel. If you spill your coffee, you can always use the towel to wipe it up.

    "Normality, I repeat, we have reached normality. Anything you can't cope with is therefore your own problem."

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