Recycled Script: Douglas Adams reused several key concepts from Shada, a story he had written for Doctor Who but which had been unfinished due to strike action (and elements of City of Death, which was broadcast).
The Red Stapler: WayForward Technologies became the name of a real company that makes video games. And indeed, it is named after its founder, Voldi Way.
Role Reprise: In the 2007 radio adaptation, Chronotis was voiced by Andrew Sachs who had previously voiced him in the Big Finish adaptation of "Shada".
Technology Marches On: Modern readers probably won't understand the significance of Gordon Way having a car phone and tape deck in his Mercedes. There's even a reference to a "Mac II"! In fact, to show how technologically savvy McDuff is, Adams describes how the character records his musical compositions "in sequencer files on the computers rather than on tape". And on it goes. All of these references seemed really modern and cool in 1987 when the novel was published but are rather quaint now.
The 2016 TV series
Actor-Shared Background: Todd and Amanda were both born the same year as the actors playing them.
Better Export for You: Americans who didn’t catch it on TV originally needed to stream it from BBC America's website, which required one to be subscribed to the channel on a Pay TV provider in order to stream the show. Other countries get to stream the series as a Netflix Original. Both seasons would eventually be made available on Hulu in the U.S., although, unlike Netflix, Hulu charges extra to eliminate commercial breaks.
Development Hell: Shortly after cancellation of the show executive producer Arvind Ethan David announced that a cartoon series was in the works with Stoopid Buddy Studios tapped as the production company. Aside from some concept art and a teaser at the end of the Socially Distanced Dirk short no other information was available, leading many fans to assume that the cartoon had been shelved. Arvind Ethan David has since given an update on the status of the project indicating that it is still ongoing, but will likely be a while yet before anything concrete can be announced.
Written-In Infirmity: Early into the show's shoot, Samuel Barnett (Dirk) slipped on a wet bridge and severely injured his right shoulder, which ultimately required surgery. He muddled through a few episodes holding his arm still, and a stunt double filled in for a fight scene, but they finally decided to mask it by having his character suffer from an escalating series of shoulder injuries.
, Douglas Adams said he knew what he was doing at the time but could no longer remember.