The live tour of The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy has been brought to a premature end.

According to a statement issued just now on Facebook, “The Radio Theatre Company deeply regret to announce the immediate cancellation of The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy Radio Show 2013 Tour. Tonight’s performance at The Hawth, Crawley and tomorrow’s at the Watford Colosseum will not take place, nor will any of the remaining scheduled shows in October and November.  Ticket holders are being contacted and should contact venues for refunds.

“Although a well-loved show, Hitchhiker’s Live has been subject to the same extreme economic pressures as many productions touring the UK this autumn. Ticket sales across the board have been lower than average and we have not escaped this trend. A difficult financial environment for such a large and technical show means that covering operating costs has become impossible. As a result in the last 24 hours we have had no option but make the extremely hard and painful decision to stop the tour.

“We sincerely apologise for any inconvenience this may cause and share the extreme disappointment and frustration felt by many who were looking forward to seeing the show. we sincerely hope that it can be brought back in the future.”

Last year’s show was great fun, and Sci-Fi Bulletin was looking forward to reviewing the return to Brighton next month. If we hear of future productions, we will post the news.

Update: Simon Jones and Dirk Maggs have added the following: “A PERSONAL NOTE FROM SIMON JONES AND DIRK MAGGS With infinite regret, despite happy audiences and 5 star reviews, we have been forced to curtail this tour ahead of schedule due to economic adversity. Having worked so hard to put on a show worthy of Douglas Adams and his devoted fans, we are utterly devastated. It has been a pleasure to be a part of a company, band and crew who have become a close knit family. We know people hoping to see the show will be as horribly disappointed as we are, and offer our heartfelt apologies for any inconvenience this has caused.”