Fans (count me among them) of the late Douglas Adams, author of "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy," will be happy to see that the BBC has created the first TV adaptation of his Dirk Gently series.

Here's how the BBC describes Howard Overman's one-off adaptation of "Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency": Anti-hero Dirk Gently operates his eponymous detective agency based on the "fundamental interconnectedness of all things." He is lazy, untidy, dismissive, an awful boss and his methods verge on the criminal. 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.

Anyone who has read Adams' Hitchhiker books (and the post-mortem extension by Eoin Colfer) knows that Adams' mind worked in mysterious ways. I love his wordplay, randomness and the way he could imbue special powers in the most simple objects -- towels, for instance. The Dirk Gently series isn't as well-known, but the BBC adaptation, listed on the autumn/winter schedule, could change that.

p.s. Also on the BBC schedule is an intriguing show called "Poe's Women." More on that later.