Turning the TV triumph of Douglas Adams's The Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy into a movie was a daunting prospect for Martin Freeman, who admits he was haunted by the Arthur Dent of Simon Jones. Freeman, best known for The Office, also chants to Steve Pratt about his latest TV sitcom called The Robinsons.

COMING face-to-face with the original Arthur Dent wasn't something that actor Martin Freeman, best known as lovelorn Tim in hit comedy The Office, was looking forward to. He met Simon Jones, who played the space traveller in the original version of The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy, when they did a Radio 4 show together.

"He was lovely to me, he was really nice," says Freeman, who plays Dent in the new movie version. "I was slightly apprehensive about working with him and meeting him because I thought I'm a Johnny-come-lately and I'm going to get to be the big film Arthur Dent.

"He put the groundwork in, did the radio and did the telly and made Arthur the thing that was in my mind when I went for the audition. I knew I couldn't do what he does because we're all different, but he cast quite a long shadow in that way because he was Arthur Dent as far as I'm concerned and will be for a lot of people still."

This is a busy time for Freeman as The Hitchhiker's Guide opens in cinemas and his new comedy series, The Robinsons, debuts on BBC2.

The long-awaited film of Douglas Adams' Hitchhiker's Guide has him playing Arthur Dent, who hitches a ride into space with best friend Ford Prefect and discovers the truth about the universe after some amazing adventures.

Freeman returned to the books after being cast. "I didn't revisit the radio or television series because I grew up knowing the TV series and what Simon Jones did with it - and very fine it was too," he explains.

"That was part of the reason why I thought initially I wasn't very good casting as Arthur because I'm so different from Simon. But it transpired that wasn't what was required and this was a different take on it. Once I got the part I just knew that if they liked what I did in the audition then that was pretty much what I should try and bring to the film.

"You've got a pretty good map in Douglas's screenplay. If you follow it, you shouldn't be given a bum steer really. I'm obviously aware that it's a character who's very beloved in this country, in a book that's very beloved. You carry that weight of knowledge, but you don't take it to work, otherwise you can't work."

Arthur has been called a quintessential Englishman, although Freeman isn't sure what people mean by that. "The parallel for me was that Arthur was stuck in a world of aliens and people he didn't know, and I was with a load of Americans," he says.

Three of his main co-stars - Sam Rockwell, Zooey Deschanel and Mos Fef - came from the States. "Whether I like it or not, we're different. There's nothing wrong with them, but they don't have the same ways," he says.

"That was the first time I'd been the sole Englishman among a bunch of Americans. I can't even say what effect that has, but it must have some. They don't get cricket, mind you neither do I."

The role required little effort in the wardrobe department as Arthur wanders through the entire film - and outer space - in his dressing gown. "It's good in one way and bad in another," he says. "You can just go to lunch and lie down and no-one worries about your costume getting creased. But you do get a bit envious after a while because everyone looks a bit glam and a bit spacey. At the end of four months filming you feel like a bit of a slob."

The film sets up a sequel with its reference to Adams's sequel The Restaurant At The End Of The Universe. Freeman would be up for filming it if it was the same team, same cast and done with the same intent.

"Given that the first one has taken more than 20 years to get to the screen, I'm not viewing it as imminent," he says.

"I had a thoroughly good time for the third of the year that we were filming. I think, let's let this film come out, hope it's good and people like it, and then we'll see."

A new TV comedy is as much of a risk as any big budget movie. Freeman was attracted to The Robinsons partly because it was written by Justin Sbresni and Mark Russell, whose BBC comedy series The Worst Week Of My Life he admired.

The actor found himself sitting at a computer in a suit again for the series, reviving memories of his role in The Office. "It definitely felt similar," he says. "There were certain points during the filming of that first episode where I thought there might be parallels for an audience, thinking, 'oh, it's him, it's a bit like that other thing because he's in an office...'.

His screen family regard him as the odd one out. "It's like he's found himself slapped down on Earth in the middle of this family he doesn't belong to. He can't quite understand why he's not communicating with people and why his points aren't hitting home to his mum or his dad," says Freeman.

His real life, long-term girlfriend, Amanda Abbington, plays Ed's ex-wife. The cast also includes Richard Johnson, Anna Massey and Hugh Bonneville.

Freeman thinks of himself as an actor who can be funny rather than a comedian. A lot of his favourite films and plays are dramatic, and he thinks about doing dramatic roles. "But I'm going with what's happening at the moment and enjoying it, and most of that is more comedic," he says.

* The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy (PG) shows in cinemas from today. The TV series is repeated on BBC2 from Tuesday at 11.20pm. The Robinsons begins on BBC2 next Thursday at 9.30pm.

Published: 28/04/2005