The fantasy film was produced for Sky1 by The Mob, a small British studio, starring David Jason, Sean Astin, Tim Curry, and Christopher Lee as the voice of Death.

The story follows the misadventures of Rincewind, a wizard who is expelled from Unseen University after spending 40 years failing to learn even the most basic magic.

After a misunderstanding over an insurance policy causes the owner of the inn where Twoflower and Rincewind are staying to commit arson, the pair flee the city.

Narrator Brian Cox explains that "in the competitive world of wizardry, the way to the top is via dead men's pointy shoes... even if you have to empty them yourself".

Trymon assassinates several faculty members but is thwarted by the incumbent Archchancellor, Galder Weatherwax, and his superior magical knowledge of the Octavo.

Trymon knows there is no point in deposing the Archchancellor until he learns how to control the Octavo, which is growing increasingly restless as Rincewind (and the spell in his head) moves further away from Ankh-Morpork and into greater danger.

The astronomers and "astrozoologists" of Krull have for many years attempted to determine the sex of Great A'Tuin, and are on the verge of launching a space vehicle to carry a pair of "chelonauts" on a new mission over the rim of the disc.

The prospect of losing the eighth spell in this fashion prompts the Octavo to act, causing A'Tuin to perform a barrel roll to recapture Rincewind, landing the pair near the centre of the disc.

The red star grows steadily larger, and the worried people of Ankh-Morpork mob the Unseen University because the wizards appear unable to save the disc from it.

Rincewind releases them and they follow Trymon to the top of the Tower of Art, afraid that he will attempt to say the spells and that they will destroy his mind (and the rest of the world).

Although the film generally remains true to the original novels, several scenes and characters were removed or merged with others to bring the script to a reasonable length.

Noting that "there wasn't time for everything", the producers cut completely the scene in the Temple of Bel-Shamharoth and the associated plotline about the significance of the number eight; Director Vadim Jean defended the decision, saying "we could have gone there, but we went to the Wyrmberg instead.

The inter-wizard rivalry at Unseen University, by contrast, was expanded and spread out throughout the film, while in the novels the sequences are short and mainly found in The Light Fantastic.

[3] To avoid the necessity of explaining the deus ex machina in detail, the Octavo in the film simply causes A'Tuin to roll to recapture Rincewind, whereas in the novel, a complicated "change spell" returns him to the disc.

[5] The Colour of Magic is the second live-action adaptation of Terry Pratchett's Discworld series, following the highly successful Hogfather, which was broadcast over Christmas 2006 to an audience of 2.6 million.

[7] Jean's main challenge was to streamline the plot and remove the many tangents that are a feature of Pratchett's work,[8] without destroying the appeal of the books.

[8] Filming took place at Pinewood Studios for the interior scenes of the Wyrmberg, the Octavo room in the Unseen University, and for exterior shots of Ankh-Morpork and the Broken Drum.

[12] In addition to the need to add CGI backdrops to every shot, hanging upside down from wires whilst fighting proved to be what David Jason described as "a nauseous experience".

[13] Karen David, who played Liessa, pulled several stomach muscles during the filming,[14] and Jason described the experience as like "being hung upside-down like the last chicken at Sainsbury's...

[16] Jason's appointment to the role, announced in April 2007,[17] drew mixed reactions, with comments ranging from "terrible choice" to "brilliant".

[22] A small number of Pratchett fans were invited to participate as extras in the mob scenes towards the end of the film, and the bar fight in the Mended Drum.

A teaser trailer, released in late February 2008,[24][25] featured principal cast members, including Rincewind, Twoflower, Trymon and the Arch-Astronomer of Krull, attempting to describe octarine, the 'colour of magic'.

[30] In addition to conventional adverts in national newspapers and banner ads on sites including MSN.com and Yahoo!.com, Sky launched a viral marketing campaign,[31] and established a bluetooth hotspot at Victoria station, London, where fans could download video clips and ringtones to mobile phones.

The first part, concluding with Rincewind and Twoflower falling off the edge of the disk in the Krullian spaceship, was broadcast on Easter Sunday (23 March 2008), at 6pm GMT on Sky1 and Sky 1 HD.

[36] The Scotsman admitted that it was a "good-looking production that proper fans probably appreciated",[37] but criticised the film for being "far too long... with leaden direction and script".

[36] Pratchett himself said he was "very pleased" with the casting and production of the film, although he admitted that seeing his literary work adapted for the screen was "very bad for me: it's like I'm wandering around on the inside of my own head".