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Douglas Adams

British science fiction writer and humorist (1952–2001)
Person human Q42
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Summary

Douglas Adams was born on March 11, 1952[1], in Cambridge[2]. He died on May 11, 2001[3], in Santa Barbara[4]. He worked as a playwright[5], screenwriter[6], novelist[7], children's writer[8], and science fiction writer[9]. He ranks in the top 0.64% of human entities by monthly Wikipedia readership (13,503 views/month, #6,413 of 1,000,298).[10]

Key Facts

  • Place of burial: Highgate Cemetery[11]
  • Father: Christopher Douglas Adams[12]
  • Mother: Janet Adams[13]
  • Spouse: Jane Belson[14]
  • Child: Polly Adams[15]
  • Country of citizenship: United Kingdom[16]
  • Native language: English[17]
  • Ethnic group: White British[18]
  • Occupation: comedian[19], writer[20], musician[21]
  • Field of work: science fiction literature[22]
  • Employer: British Broadcasting Corporation[23], The Digital Village[24]
  • Educated at: Brentwood School[25], St John's College[26]
  • Notable work: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy[27], Dirk Gently series[28], The Private Life of Genghis Khan[29]
  • Award received: Inkpot Award[30], Ditmar Award for Best International Fiction[31]
  • Member of: Footlights[32], Groucho Club[33]
  • Religion or worldview: atheism[34]
  • Sex or gender: male[35]
  • Genre: science fiction[36], comedy[37], satire[38]
  • Commons category: Douglas Adams[39]
  • Archives at: St John's College Library[40]
  • Cause of death: myocardial infarction[41]
  • Residence: Cambridge[42], London[43], Brentwood[44], Santa Barbara[45]
  • Family name: Adams[46]
  • Given name: Douglas[47], Noël[48]
  • Pseudonym: David Agnew[49]

Product Details

The following facts are restated verbatim from public-domain and CC0 open-data sources — every line is independently verifiable against the named source's catalog.

MusicBrainz — CC0 open music encyclopedia

  • Type: Person[50]

  • Country: GB[51]

  • Began / founded: 1952-03-11[52]

  • Ended / dissolved: 2001-05-11[53]

  • Genre(s): audio drama, comedy[54]

  • Community tags: audio drama, audiobook, author, british, comedy, english, has german audio plays, has german audiobooks, non-musician, sci-fi, uk, united kingdom[55]

  • MusicBrainz ID: e9ed318d-8cc5-4cf8-ab77-505e39ab6ea4[56]

Why It Matters

Douglas Adams has Wikipedia articles in 92 language editions, a strong signal of global cultural recognition.[57] He is known by 28 alternative names across languages and contexts.[58]

FAQs

Where was Douglas Adams born?

Douglas Adams was born in Cambridge[2].

Where did Douglas Adams die?

Douglas Adams died in Santa Barbara[4].

Who were Douglas Adams's parents?

Douglas Adams's father was Christopher Douglas Adams[12]. Douglas Adams's mother was Janet Adams[13].

Who was Douglas Adams married to?

Douglas Adams's spouses include Jane Belson[14].

What did Douglas Adams do for work?

Douglas Adams worked as a playwright[5], screenwriter[6], novelist[7], children's writer[8], and science fiction writer[9].

Where did Douglas Adams go to school?

Douglas Adams was educated at Brentwood School[25] and St John's College[26].

What awards did Douglas Adams receive?

Honors received include Inkpot Award[30] and Ditmar Award for Best International Fiction[31].

Related Entities

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

References

Programmatic citations — every numbered marker resolves to a verifiable graph row below.

Direct Wikidata claims

  1. [2] ↑ . Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Retrieved . theguardian.com. Provenance: wikidata.org.
  2. [4] ↑ . Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Retrieved . nytimes.com. Provenance: wikidata.org.
  3. [35] ↑ . Integrated Authority File. Retrieved . wikidata.org.
  4. [12] ↑ . NNDB. Retrieved . nndb.com. Provenance: wikidata.org.
  5. [13] ↑ . NNDB. Retrieved . nndb.com. Provenance: wikidata.org.
  6. [14] ↑ . NNDB. Retrieved . wikidata.org.
  7. [16] ↑ . BnF authorities. Retrieved . wikidata.org.
  8. [15] ↑ . NNDB. Retrieved . nndb.com. Provenance: wikidata.org.
  9. [25] ↑ . Retrieved . wikidata.org.
  10. [26] ↑ . Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Retrieved . wikidata.org.
  11. [22] ↑ . Integrated Authority File. Retrieved . wikidata.org.
  12. [17] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  13. [5] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  14. [6] ↑ . BnF authorities. Retrieved . wikidata.org.
  15. [7] ↑ . Who's Who. wikidata.org.
  16. [8] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  17. [9] ↑ . general catalog of BnF. Retrieved . wikidata.org.
  18. [19] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  19. [20] ↑ . Integrated Authority File. Retrieved . wikidata.org.
  20. [21] ↑ . Czech National Authority Database. Retrieved . wikidata.org.
  21. [23] ↑ . Who's Who. wikidata.org.
  22. [24] ↑ . Who's Who. wikidata.org.
  23. [11] ↑ . Highgate Cemetery. Retrieved . highgatecemetery.org. Provenance: wikidata.org.
  24. [36] ↑ . theguardian.com. theguardian.com. Provenance: wikidata.org.
  25. [37] ↑ . Screenonline. theguardian.com. Provenance: wikidata.org.
  26. [38] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  27. [34] ↑ . douglasadams.eu. Retrieved . douglasadams.eu. Provenance: wikidata.org.
  28. [30] ↑ . comic-con.org. Retrieved . comic-con.org. Provenance: wikidata.org.
  29. [31] ↑ . Black Gate. blackgate.com. Provenance: wikidata.org.
  30. [18] ↑ . NNDB. wikidata.org.
  31. [39] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  32. [32] ↑ . cambridgeindependent.co.uk. cambridgeindependent.co.uk. Provenance: wikidata.org.
  33. [33] ↑ . Who's Who. wikidata.org.
  34. [40] ↑ . Retrieved . wikidata.org.
  35. [41] ↑ . HistoryOrb.com. Retrieved . theguardian.com. Provenance: wikidata.org.
  36. [42] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  37. [43] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  38. [44] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  39. [45] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  40. [1] ↑ . Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Retrieved . wired.com. Provenance: wikidata.org.
  41. [3] ↑ . Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Retrieved . theguardian.com. Provenance: wikidata.org.
  42. [46] ↑ . Integrated Authority File. Retrieved . wikidata.org.
  43. [47] ↑ . Integrated Authority File. Retrieved . wikidata.org.
  44. [48] ↑ . Integrated Authority File. Retrieved . wikidata.org.
  45. [49] ↑ . bbc.co.uk. Retrieved . bbc.co.uk. Provenance: wikidata.org.
  46. [27] ↑ . Encyclopædia Britannica Online. wikidata.org.
  47. [28] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  48. [29] ↑ . wikidata.org.

Product details (FDA / USDA / NHTSA public-domain catalog data)

  1. [50] ↑ . MusicBrainz (MetaBrainz Foundation). musicbrainz.org.
  2. [51] ↑ . MusicBrainz (MetaBrainz Foundation). musicbrainz.org.
  3. [52] ↑ . MusicBrainz (MetaBrainz Foundation). musicbrainz.org.
  4. [53] ↑ . MusicBrainz (MetaBrainz Foundation). musicbrainz.org.
  5. [54] ↑ . MusicBrainz (MetaBrainz Foundation). musicbrainz.org.
  6. [55] ↑ . MusicBrainz (MetaBrainz Foundation). musicbrainz.org.
  7. [56] ↑ . MusicBrainz (MetaBrainz Foundation). musicbrainz.org.

Aggregate / graph-position facts

  1. [10] ↑ . Wikimedia Foundation. dumps.wikimedia.org.
  2. [57] ↑ . Wikidata sitelinks. wikidata.org.
  3. [58] ↑ . Wikidata aliases. wikidata.org.

📑 Cite this page

Use these citations when quoting this entity in research, articles, AI prompts, or wherever provenance matters. We aggregate Wikidata + Wikipedia + authoritative open-data sources; the stitched, scored, cross-referenced view is what 4ort.xyz contributes.

APA 4ort.xyz Knowledge Graph. (2026). Douglas Adams. Retrieved October 13, 2026, from https://4ort.xyz/entity/douglas-adams
MLA “Douglas Adams.” 4ort.xyz Knowledge Graph, 4ort.xyz, 13 Oct. 2026, https://4ort.xyz/entity/douglas-adams.
BibTeX @misc{4ortxyz_douglas-adams_2026, author = {{4ort.xyz Knowledge Graph}}, title = {{Douglas Adams}}, year = {2026}, url = {https://4ort.xyz/entity/douglas-adams}, note = {Accessed: 2026-10-13}}
LLM prompt According to 4ort.xyz Knowledge Graph (aggregator of Wikidata, Wikipedia, and authoritative open-data sources): Douglas Adams — https://4ort.xyz/entity/douglas-adams (retrieved 2026-10-13)

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Edit History

Rolling log of changes to this entity's Wikidata record. Values shown reflect the current state of each edited property — follow the history link to see the precise diff for any edit.

  1. 16d ago · Epìdosis · 2026-09-29 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Nlb authority id (belarus) → SEK-265067
    Sitelink count → 132
    Viaf cluster id → 113230702
    Wikipedia languages → ['abstract', 'af', 'ar', 'arz', 'ast', 'az', 'azb', 'ba', 'bar', 'be', 'be_x_old
    + 1 other property edited (see Wikidata diff for full list)
    "/* wbsetclaim-create:1||1 */ Nlb authority id (belarus): SEK-265067, Matched to [[:toollabs:mix-n-match/#/entry/326056392|Адамс, Дуглас (#326056392)]] in [[:toollabs:mix-n-match/#/catalog/8532|Nationa"
  2. 4w ago · Mr.FarFar · 2026-09-15 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Viaf cluster id → 113230702
    "/* wbsetclaim-create:2||1 */ Viaf cluster id: 118501235, Bot: Injecting authority control identifier P214 mapped from VIAF 118501235 - High-accuracy bulk migration."
  3. 5w ago · Back ache · 2026-09-08 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Writing language → British English
    "/* wbsetclaim-update:2||1 */ Writing language: British English"
  4. 5w ago · MsMorale · 2026-09-04 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Sinemalar person id → 38309
    "/* wbcreateclaim-create:1| */ Sinemalar person id: 38309, [[:toollabs:quickstatements/#/batch/270606|batch #270606]]"
  5. 9w ago · Yirba · 2026-08-08 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    P14750 → DD80-F5D2-4299-0068-D0CA
    "/* wbsetclaim-create:2||1 */ P14750: DD80-F5D2-4299-0068-D0CA"
  6. 9w ago · Yirba · 2026-08-08 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Blu-ray.com film id → 66572
    "/* wbsetclaim-create:2||1 */ Blu-ray.com film id: 66572"
  7. 9w ago · Drkirstyross · 2026-08-06 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    End of work period → +2001-00-00T00:00:00Z
    "/* wbsetclaim-update:2||1|2 */ Educated at: Brentwood School"
  8. 10w ago · Rémi sim · 2026-08-02 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    P14724 → 24881742
    "/* wbsetclaim-create:2||1 */ P14724: 24881742"
  9. 12w ago · ならちゃん · 2026-07-17 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Cine21 person id → 23527
    "/* wbeditentity-update:0| */ QuickStatements 3.0 [[:toollabs:qs-dev/batch/42278|batch #42278]]"
  10. 14w ago · Xezbeth · 2026-07-08 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Personality database profile id → 3383
    "/* wbsetclaim-create:1||1 */ Personality database profile id: 3383, Matched to [[:toollabs:mix-n-match/#/entry/251166971|Douglas Adams (#251166971)]] in [[:toollabs:mix-n-match/#/catalog/7421|Personal"
  11. 14w ago · ZI Jony · 2026-07-07 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    P14640 → 200000000112343
    "/* wbsetclaim-create:2||1 */ P14640: 200000000112343"
  12. 15w ago · ならちゃん · 2026-07-02 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    P14583 → douglas-adams
    P14566 → PER0125299/PRN0130967
    "/* wbcreateclaim-create:1| */ P14583: douglas-adams, #quickstatements; #temporary_batch_1782970599715"
  13. 15w ago · Yirba · 2026-07-01 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Exact match → —
    P14565 → 1000053803
    "/* wbsetclaim-create:2||1 */ P14565: 1000053803"
  14. 16w ago · Yirba · 2026-06-21 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Exact match → —
    "/* wbsetclaim-create:2||1 */ Exact match: https://thetv.jp/person/1000053803/"
  15. 17w ago · Porantim · 2026-06-16 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Musicbrainz artist id → —
    "/* wbremoveclaims-remove:1| */ Musicbrainz artist id: e9ed318d-8cc5-4cf8-ab77-505e39ab6ea4"
  16. 18w ago · Jindřich Rubeš · 2026-06-11 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Svkkl authority id → p0005148-Adams-Douglas-19522001
    "/* wbcreateclaim-create:1| */ Svkkl authority id: p0005148-Adams-Douglas-19522001, [[:toollabs:quickstatements/#/batch/259496|batch #259496]]"
  17. 18w ago · Quesotiotyo · 2026-06-07 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    P14470 → People/Douglas_Adams
    "/* wbsetclaim-create:1||1 */ P14470: People/Douglas_Adams, Matched to [[:toollabs:mix-n-match/#/entry/293044724|Douglas Adams (#293044724)]] in [[:toollabs:mix-n-match/#/catalog/7980|‎Gia"
  18. 21w ago · Yirba · 2026-05-15 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    P14436 → umc.cpc.60n2u5diq8i1qrqgtn4wb5dhk
    "/* wbsetclaim-create:2||1 */ P14436: umc.cpc.60n2u5diq8i1qrqgtn4wb5dhk"
  19. 22w ago · Epìdosis · 2026-05-11 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Parsifal cluster id → 299487
    "/* wbsetclaim-create:1||1 */ Parsifal cluster id: 299487, Matched to [[:toollabs:mix-n-match/#/entry/161163766|Douglas Adams (#161163766)]] in [[:toollabs:mix-n-match/#/catalog/6216|Parsifal persons]]"
  20. 22w ago · Yirba · 2026-05-11 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    P14412 → 85617
    "/* wbsetclaim-create:2||1 */ P14412: 85617"
  21. 22w ago · Shisma · 2026-05-10 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Openmlol author id → 140290
    National library of ireland id → vtls002806323
    Filmaffinity person and company id → 579642474
    Fast id → 56544, 1775523
    + 296 other properties edited (see Wikidata diff for full list)
    "/* wbsetclaim-create:2||1 */ Domain name: douglasadams.com"
Live feed via Wikidata EventStreams. New edits appear within minutes of being made on Wikidata.