Radio 4, March 15, 2018 and on iPlayer

There’s something… different… about Zaphod.

Well, that’s probably the understatement of the millennium, but in this case, I’m referring to a certain head-ectomy that he’s had that finally gets rid of the problems of trying to envisage him with two heads constantly. His Left Brain (or LB as it’s known) is running the Heart of Gold, but even that can’t get Our Heroes out of the terrible dilemma in which they find themselves. Cue the return of Wowbagger the Infinitely Prolonged…

And we’re firmly now into the plot of Eoin Colfer’s And Another Thing… with its Irish influences allowing Ed Byrne to make an enjoyable appearance as another car-related character (alongside Jon Culshaw as an Elder God demonstrating sides to itself that H.P. Lovecraft singularly failed to mention). There are fun moments for the Vogons, and a nice little routine for Arthur and an AI that wants to smarten him up (which reminds me of Patrick Troughton’s similar routine early in his time as the Second Doctor).

There’s also karaoke time on the Heart of Gold which allows Phil Pope to come up with the frankly brilliant Teleportation Blues – hopefully we may get a few more such items along the way this season.

Verdict: An enjoyable half hour with some great laugh aloud moments. 8/10

Paul Simpson