Douglas Adams
Birthday: 11 March 1952, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England, UK
Birth Name: Douglas Noel Adams
Height: 196 cm
Born Douglas Noel Adams on March 11, 1952 in Cambridge. From 1959 until 1970 he went to Brentwood school in Essex, and his main interest was science. As a student in Cambridge he decided to hitch-hike ...Show More
Even he, to whom most things that most people would think were pretty smart were pretty dumb, though Show more
Even he, to whom most things that most people would think were pretty smart were pretty dumb, thought it was pretty smart. Hide
Cyberspace is - or can be - a good, friendly and egalitarian place to meet.
Cyberspace is - or can be - a good, friendly and egalitarian place to meet.
Bypasses are devices that allow some people to dash from point A to point B very fast while other pe Show more
Bypasses are devices that allow some people to dash from point A to point B very fast while other people dash form point B to point A very fast. People living at point C, being a point directly in between, are often given to wonder what's so great about point A that so many people from point B are so keen to get there, and what's so great about point B that so many people from point A are so keen to get there. They often wish that people would just once and for all decide where the hell they wanted to be. Hide
I had a great deal of say, but the producer didn't have a great deal of listen.
I had a great deal of say, but the producer didn't have a great deal of listen.
It is not considered fashionable in Britain to know things or to talk about stuff. You should bear t Show more
It is not considered fashionable in Britain to know things or to talk about stuff. You should bear this in mind when visiting. Hide
I find the whole business of religion profoundly interesting. But it does mystify me that otherwise Show more
I find the whole business of religion profoundly interesting. But it does mystify me that otherwise intelligent people take it seriously. Hide
Anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the Show more
Anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job. Hide
Trying to predict the future is a mug's game. But it's a game we increasingly have to play because t Show more
Trying to predict the future is a mug's game. But it's a game we increasingly have to play because the World is changing so fast. And we need to have some idea of what the future's going to be like because we're going to have to live there. Probably, next week. Hide
One of the best ways to keep from being unhappy is not to have a word for it.
One of the best ways to keep from being unhappy is not to have a word for it.
The big corporations are suddenly taking notice of the web, and their reactions have been slow. Even Show more
The big corporations are suddenly taking notice of the web, and their reactions have been slow. Even the computer industry failed to see the importance of the Internet, but that's not saying much. Let's face it, the computer industry failed to see that the century would end. Hide
Having been an English literary graduate, I've been trying to avoid the idea of doing art ever since Show more
Having been an English literary graduate, I've been trying to avoid the idea of doing art ever since. I think the idea of art kills creativity. I think media are at their most interesting before anybody's thought of calling them art, when people still think they're just a load of junk. Hide
[agreeing that Starship Titanic (1998) should be delayed rather than released incomplete] We should Show more
[agreeing that Starship Titanic (1998) should be delayed rather than released incomplete] We should nail our colors to the mast of quality. Hide
A danger one runs is that the moment you have anything in the script that's clearly meant to be funn Show more
A danger one runs is that the moment you have anything in the script that's clearly meant to be funny in some way, everybody thinks 'oh well we can do silly voices and silly walks and so on', and I think that's exactly the wrong way to do it. Hide
I loved Monty Python's Flying Circus (1969). For years I wanted to be John Cleese, I was most disapo Show more
I loved Monty Python's Flying Circus (1969). For years I wanted to be John Cleese, I was most disapointed when I found out the job had been taken. Hide
Gag Halfrunt, Zaphod's Braincare Specialist: "Zaphod's just this guy, you know?" Vogon Captain: "A p Show more
Gag Halfrunt, Zaphod's Braincare Specialist: "Zaphod's just this guy, you know?" Vogon Captain: "A personal friend?" Gag Halfrunt: "In my line we don't make personal friends" Vogon Captain: "Professional Detachment?" Gag Halfrunt: "No, we just don't have the knack..." Hide
There are two things in particular that it [the computer industry] failed to foresee: one was the co Show more
There are two things in particular that it [the computer industry] failed to foresee: one was the coming of the Internet . . . the other was the fact that the century would end. Hide
[11/8/00] I think that growing up in a crowded continent like Europe with an awful lot of competing Show more
[11/8/00] I think that growing up in a crowded continent like Europe with an awful lot of competing claims, ideas . . . cultures . . . and systems of thought we have, perforce, developed a more sophisticated notion of what the word freedom means than I see much evidence of in America. To be frank, it sometimes seems that the American idea of freedom has more to do with my freedom to do what I want than your freedom to do what you want. I think that in Europe we're probably better at understanding how to balance those competing claims, though not a lot. Hide
Present someone with a clipboard questionnaire and they lie. You'd be amazed how many people out the Show more
Present someone with a clipboard questionnaire and they lie. You'd be amazed how many people out there are the millionaire CEO of their own company. Hide
He was a Poet, a Philosopher and a Dreamer. Or, as his wife would have it, an "Idiot".
He was a Poet, a Philosopher and a Dreamer. Or, as his wife would have it, an "Idiot".
One of the many major problems with governing people is that of whom you get to do it; or rather of Show more
One of the many major problems with governing people is that of whom you get to do it; or rather of who manages to get people to let them do it to them: It is a well known fact, that those people who most want to rule people are, ipso facto, those least suited to do it. Anyone who is capable of getting themselves into a position of power should on no account be allowed to do the job. Another problem with governing people is people. Hide
The inventor of the Total Perspective Vortex did it, as is the case with the best of things, to anno Show more
The inventor of the Total Perspective Vortex did it, as is the case with the best of things, to annoy his wife. Hide
There is a particular disdain with which Siamese cats regard you. Anyone who has walked in on the Qu Show more
There is a particular disdain with which Siamese cats regard you. Anyone who has walked in on the Queen cleaning her teeth will be familiar with the feeling. Hide
Human beings, who are almost unique in having the ability to learn from the experience of others, ar Show more
Human beings, who are almost unique in having the ability to learn from the experience of others, are also remarkable for their apparent disinclination to do so. Hide
I think that Doctor Who (1963) is at its best when the humour and the drama work together and that h Show more
I think that Doctor Who (1963) is at its best when the humour and the drama work together and that however absurd a situation may be, it is actually very, very real and it has very real consequences. That's the moment at which something that's inherently absurd actually becomes frightening. Hide
These people look at a catflap and they say "I could have thought of that!" The point is they didn't Show more
These people look at a catflap and they say "I could have thought of that!" The point is they didn't, and a very revealing and significant point it is too. Hide
I love deadlines. I love the whooshing noise they make as they go by.
I love deadlines. I love the whooshing noise they make as they go by.
We notice things that don't work. We don't notice things that do. We notice computers, we don't noti Show more
We notice things that don't work. We don't notice things that do. We notice computers, we don't notice pennies. We notice e-book readers, we don't notice books. Hide
See first, think later, then test. But always see first. Otherwise you will only see what you were e Show more
See first, think later, then test. But always see first. Otherwise you will only see what you were expecting. Most scientists forget that. Hide
When it comes down to it, my principle is this - Arthur should be British. The rest of the cast shou Show more
When it comes down to it, my principle is this - Arthur should be British. The rest of the cast should be decided purely on merit and not on nationality. Hide
[on BBC Online chat, 11/8/00] I'm 48, which is a bit of a shock to me. Why only last year I thought Show more
[on BBC Online chat, 11/8/00] I'm 48, which is a bit of a shock to me. Why only last year I thought I was a precocious young thing! Hide
I've come up with a set of rules that describe our reactions to technologies: 1. Anything that is in Show more
I've come up with a set of rules that describe our reactions to technologies: 1. Anything that is in the world when you're born is normal and ordinary and is just a natural part of the way the world works. 2. Anything that's invented between when you're fifteen and thirty-five is new and exciting and revolutionary and you can probably get a career in it. 3. Anything invented after you're thirty-five is against the natural order of things. Hide
Douglas Adams's FILMOGRAPHY
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as Actor (43)
as Creator (2)
