'Hitcher' by Julian Barratt and Noel Fielding

Bob Fossil’s tour of the Zoo-Niverse with a class of schoolchildren ends in disaster when Ivan the Russian Bear reacts badly to Vince and Howard’s jazz funk serenade, breaking free of his cage and going on a rampage before he can be subdued by Naboo. Fossil arranges for Ivan to be sent to an animal prison, and appoints Vince and Howard to transport him there. A road trip begins, and Vince and Howard start the inevitable argument over which music to play: jazz vs. Gary Numan. After several hours, Vince suggests a short cut to shave time off their trip, but he mistakes one of his strawberry laces for a road on the map, which results in him, Howard and Ivan getting lost in the Forest of Death. After another argument, Vince leaves the car to make his way on foot; he soon encounters his childhood mentor, Brian Ferry, who tells him of a curse on the forest by a green-faced devil named Babu Yagu. Meanwhile Howard picks up a hitchhiker, a green-faced man with a giant thumb, who carries a mysterious box; however, he quickly regrets his decision when it becomes obvious that the Hitcher is psychotically deranged. After stopping the car so that the Hitcher can relieve himself, Howard then drives off without him. Realising that he still has the Hitcher’s box, Howard opens it and peers inside – and promptly falls in. Trapped inside the dark box Howard meets Vince, another prisoner of the Hitcher. Then the Hitcher appears; he plans to cut up Howard and Vince and feed them to the evil menagerie in his Zoo For Animal Offenders…

Noel Fielding (Vince Noir / The Hitcher), Julian Barratt (Howard Moon / Brian Ferry), Michael Fielding (Naboo), Rich Fulcher (Bob Fossil / Piper Twin), Peter Elliott (Ivan the Russian Bear), Dave Brown (Piper Twin), Gurbax Singh (Other Vince Noir), Dean Mitchell (Zoo Keeper)

Directed by Paul King
Produced by Alison MacPhail and Spencer Millman
Associate producers Julian Barratt and Noel Fielding
Executive producers Steve Coogan and Henry Normal
Original Music by Julian Barratt
A Baby Cow production for BBC Three

TX (BBC3):
6th July 2004

Notes:
*Featuring Vince Noir, Howard Moon, Naboo and Bob Fossil