BBC Four Casts Its Dirk Gently

Green Wing ’s Stephen Mangan set to play Douglas Adams’ sci-fi detective

He is joined by Darren Boyd ( Royal Wedding , Little Dorrit ) as his unwitting sidekick Richard Macduff and Helen Baxendale ( Cold Feet , Friends ) as Richard's girlfriend Susan in the adaptation by Misfits creator Howard Overman.

Dirk Gently operates his eponymous detective agency based on the fundamental interconnectedness of all things. Perpetually broke, hopelessly chaotic and utterly infuriating, most people suspect Dirk is nothing more than a cheap conman. And they might be right – but nevertheless his methods, though unusual, do often produce surprising results. When Dirk sets out to solve an apparently simple and harmless disappearance of a cat from an old lady’s house, he unwittingly uncovers a double murder which, in turn, leads to a host of even more extraordinary events.

Stephen Mangan says: “I’ve been a fan of Douglas Adams ever since the Hitchhiker's radio series which I used to record as a child and listen to over and over again in my bedroom. It’s such a thrill to now be playing one of his brilliant characters. Dirk is a chaotic, anarchic force of nature with a totally unique take on the world. He is described as ‘lazy, untidy, dismissive and unreliable’. I’ve absolutely no idea why they thought I'd be right for the role.”

Ed Victor, Douglas Adams’ agent, says: “For all the years I represented the late, great Douglas Adams, the most substantial frustration for both of us was that we could’'t get films made either of Hitchhiker or Dirk . Douglas once said, memorably, that, ‘getting a film made in Hollywood was like trying to cook a steak by having a bunch of people come into the room and breathe on it’! Well, we did eventually get a film made in Hollywood of Hitchhiker and, tragically, Douglas didn’t live to see it. Nor will he see this adaptation of Dirk – but it’s worth bearing in mind that Douglas always thought Dirk would make a better film than Hitchhiker and I feel sure that this new TV drama with a terrific script by Howard Overman will prove his point!”

Dirk Gently is a one-hour one-off drama being directed by Damon Thomas ( The First Men In The Moon , Crooked House ) for BBC Four. Shooting commenced this week in Bristol for a winter 2010/2011 transmission.