Bread-Toasting Knife

The bread-toasting knife being used by Trillian in the film to make toast.

The bread-toasting knife (also called the lightsaber knife or laser knife) was an item shown in the 2005 film The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, used by Trillian to make toast.

This knife appears only in the film, seen in the kitchen on board the starship Heart of Gold. It is one of many futuristic items seen on board the ship. The manufacturer or creator of the knife is unknown, however, it is possible that it is a product from Sirius Cybernetics Corporation, who are the creators of most of the technology on the Heart of Gold.

Trillian holding the knife in the film.

In the film, Trillian uses the knife to make toast while talking to Arthur Dent, demonstrating how it works and telling him that "this toasts bread while you're slicing it." The knife has a normal Earth knife handle, however instead of a blade, it seems to have a long, red beam of light, similar to that of a lightsaber from the Star Wars universe. It also makes a similar noise to a lightsaber, thus being dubbed by many fans as "the lightsaber knife."

The prop bread-toasting knife used in the film, shown here switched on.

The knife works by being removed from the kitchen knife block and switched on at the handle. It is possible that the knife block somehow charges or heats up the knife when waiting to be used, as it looks somewhat similar to a USB port.

Appearances

Film

• The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

Trivia

• Along with several new concepts brought into the film, such as the Vogon Slapsticks, the film creators stated that the bread-toasting knife came from an idea by Douglas Adams. It is unknown how much or little his idea influenced the final creation.

  

  The Toasting Knife

  "So my first invention that has came from a viewers suggestion “a knife that can toast as you cut the bread” and here it is."

• Many fans have commented that the knife may not be entirely useful due to only toasting one side at a time. It is possible that this design idea was on purpose, as many of Adams' creations were often entirely useless or silly, often as a commentary on consumerism or for comedic effect.
• The knife is a clear reference to the lightsabers from the Star Wars films, including the sound effect for when it is used. The owners of red lightsabers in Star Wars were often villains or enemies with red-hued lightsabers wielded by Sith and Dark Jedi, however, this colour seems to have no significance or connection to Trillian, and was likely only chosen as it shows the heat of the knife.
• In 2015, a fan created a real-life working version of the bread-toasting knife.

Behind the scenes

The prop knife/knife handle holder, as used in the 2005 film.

• The bread used in the film was a foam-latex prop with one loose slice.
• The knife holder could hold four knife handles and had a little red LED on it.
• The prop knife handle had a small translucent piece of plastic sticking out of the handle which lit up bright orange when a button was pressed.