Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #10039 in Books
• Published on: 1988-06-24
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 256 pages

Customer Reviews

Do not go Gently into that good night...
I have to admit to being a little disappointed by this long-awaited audio version of Adams' peerless (unless you count the sequel 'The Long Dark Tea Time of the Soul') late 80s sci-fi/fantasy/drama/comedy novel. I have to be honest and say that Harry Enfield was miscast in the title role - his smug tones are not at all how I envisaged the underhand but essentially likeable Dirk - I also found the constant contemporary references that the audio version has added to the original novel ('Asbo'), rather annoying - in the same way that the current incarnation of Doctor Who's Timelord insists on littering his talk with references to 'Teletubbies', 'Eastenders' etc.
These grumbles aside I found the rest of the cast to be perfectly...well, cast - Billy Boyd in particular captures hapless computer programmer 'Richard' precisely as he is whirled along by events far beyond his comprehension. I'm not sure why Dirk's receptionist, Janet, needed to have her (extremely minor) role in the novel fleshed out, as she adds little to the story but this is not a major concern as she can be ignored.
Overall, the package is very impressive; I guess it's never going to be how you imagine it, especially after twenty years or so. Hopefully they'll serialise 'Teatime' - with some minor improvements it could be awesome.

Dirk Gently
A bit like the Hitchikers guide, I sort of missed the post grad humour. Its a bit like Pratchett in that its a bit twee and nice. I was reading Small Mercy by Tom Dawes round about the same time and found that the better book, similar humour but a bit grittier. Hey ho

Loved it
Like many others I was less than convinced about the casting of Harry Enfield, but with persistence I grew to love him. I liked Dirk Gently as a character because, like Ford Prefect, he had an infuriating habit of appearing to know everything without ever having gone through a learning process - despite knowing that Dirk went to Cambridge too my mind seemed to brush it aside almost as a formality!

Something about the way Harry Enfield delivered complex lines in an almost simplistic way reinforced the idea that, like Ford, he was several steps ahead of everyone, one felt guilty needing to hear them again and it was clear that Dirk Gently had a very sharp mind indeed.

I loved the odd homage to Douglas Adam's magnum opus, for example, the sound of the lift opening in the last episode, which was taken from the Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy. I only wish Adams had lived to hear it. He would have adored it. I did.