Hitchcon
Encyclopedia
Hitchcon was a science fiction convention
held at the Southbank Centre in London
, England
, on 11 October 2009. It celebrated the 30th anniversary of the publication of the first book in the comic sci-fi
series The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
by Douglas Adams
. The convention also saw the official launch for the sixth book in the series, And Another Thing...
, written by Eoin Colfer
, after Adams died in 2001.
Hitchcon was organised by Pan Macmillan, publisher of the original series, and Penguin Books
, publisher of And Another Thing.... Pan Macmillan published a new version of the original series on 1 September 2009, 42 days before the anniversary. A new website was launched, which includes competitions, games and ringtone downloads. There was also a live Twitter
feed from the convention, written in the style of the character Marvin the Paranoid Android
.
Events at the convention included a photo call with the actors who appeared in the original radio series
including Simon Jones
(Arthur Dent
); "The Douglas Adams Chat Show", a discussion hosted by TV presenter Clive Anderson
about the works of Douglas Adams; a signing session for the original series; a reading from And Another Thing...; and a signing session for And Another Thing....
Science fiction convention
Science fiction conventions are gatherings of fans of various forms of speculative fiction including science fiction and fantasy. Historically, science fiction conventions had focused primarily on literature, but the purview of many extends to such other avenues of expression as movies and...
held at the Southbank Centre in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, on 11 October 2009. It celebrated the 30th anniversary of the publication of the first book in the comic sci-fi
Comic science fiction
Comic science fiction is a sub-genre of science fiction that exploits the genre's conventions for comic effect. Comic science fiction often mocks or satirizes standard SF conventions like alien invasion of Earth, interstellar travel, or futuristic technology....
series The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is a science fiction comedy series created by Douglas Adams. Originally a radio comedy broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 1978, it was later adapted to other formats, and over several years it gradually became an international multi-media phenomenon...
by Douglas Adams
Douglas Adams
Douglas Noel Adams was an English writer and dramatist. He is best known as the author of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, which started life in 1978 as a BBC radio comedy before developing into a "trilogy" of five books that sold over 15 million copies in his lifetime, a television...
. The convention also saw the official launch for the sixth book in the series, And Another Thing...
And Another Thing... (novel)
And Another Thing… is the title of the sixth installment of Douglas Adams' The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy "trilogy". The book, written by Eoin Colfer, author of the Artemis Fowl series, was published on the thirtieth anniversary of the first book, 12 October 2009, in hardback. It was...
, written by Eoin Colfer
Eoin Colfer
Eoin Colfer is an Irish author. He is most famous as the author of the Artemis Fowl series, but he has also written other successful books. His novels have been compared to the works of J. K. Rowling...
, after Adams died in 2001.
Hitchcon was organised by Pan Macmillan, publisher of the original series, and Penguin Books
Penguin Books
Penguin Books is a publisher founded in 1935 by Sir Allen Lane and V.K. Krishna Menon. Penguin revolutionised publishing in the 1930s through its high quality, inexpensive paperbacks, sold through Woolworths and other high street stores for sixpence. Penguin's success demonstrated that large...
, publisher of And Another Thing.... Pan Macmillan published a new version of the original series on 1 September 2009, 42 days before the anniversary. A new website was launched, which includes competitions, games and ringtone downloads. There was also a live Twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
feed from the convention, written in the style of the character Marvin the Paranoid Android
Marvin the Paranoid Android
Marvin, the Paranoid Android, is a fictional character in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series by Douglas Adams. Marvin is the ship's robot aboard the starship Heart of Gold...
.
Events at the convention included a photo call with the actors who appeared in the original radio series
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (radio series)
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is a science fiction comedy radio series written by Douglas Adams . It was originally broadcast in the United Kingdom by BBC Radio 4 in 1978, and afterwards on global short wave radio on the BBC World Service, National Public Radio in the U.S. and CBC Radio in...
including Simon Jones
Simon Jones (actor)
Simon Jones is an English actor, most famous for his appearances in the television and radio series of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, in which he played the lead role of Arthur Dent from 1978 to 2005...
(Arthur Dent
Arthur Dent
Arthur Philip Dent is a fictional character, the hapless protagonist and anti-hero in the comic science fiction series The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams....
); "The Douglas Adams Chat Show", a discussion hosted by TV presenter Clive Anderson
Clive Anderson
Clive Anderson is a British former barrister, best known for being a comedy writer as well as a radio and television presenter in the United Kingdom...
about the works of Douglas Adams; a signing session for the original series; a reading from And Another Thing...; and a signing session for And Another Thing....