Created by Peter Robinson Gender Male Nationality British Played by Stephen Tompkinson TV show DCI Banks | Portrayed by Stephen Tompkinson Occupation Police Officer Creator Peter Robinson First appearance Gallows View | |
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Title Detective Inspector, Detective Chief Inspector, Detective Superintendent Similar Inspector Wexford, Adam Dalgliesh, Inspector Morse, Dr Tony Hill, Barbara Havers | ||
Detective Superintendent Alan Banks (b. 1951) is the fictional protagonist in a series of crime novels by Peter Robinson. Since 2010 several of the novels have been adapted for television under the series title DCI Banks with Stephen Tompkinson in the lead role.
Contents
Background
The first novel related to Banks was published in 1987, and carried the blurb: "After once living in London and working as part of the Metropolitan Police Unsolved Crime Squad, Detective Inspector Alan Banks now lives in the fictional English town of Eastvale which is located in Yorkshire north of Ripon near the A1. He has two children, Tracy and Brian, and a doting wife, Sandra. Since moving to Eastvale, Banks now works as the DCI for Eastvale Police, with his own small office, containing a metal desk and two chairs, with the window looking out onto the town's busy Market Square. Coming from working-class stock, DCI Banks abhors anything to do with money and wealth, a driving force behind his decision to move from London to Eastvale. His big goal was to not get caught up in the materialism of the big city, and by moving away, has managed to raise a respected family in a bucolic setting. DCI Banks also has an unique but good taste in music, and often, his charming demeanor helps him to relate to his suspects, as well as victims of crime. He can come down hard, though, when he needs to get answers quickly. But his main strength - he uses creativity in his interrogations and investigations."
The majority of the first dozen novels published had a focus mostly on crimes investigated by Banks. In the 1999 novel, In A Dry Season, Banks and his wife, Sandra, are separated and eventually divorce. The character of Detective Sergeant (subsequently Detective Inspector) Annie Cabbot makes her first appearance as a member of Banks' team. Subsequent novels have a sub-plot about the on-off romance between Banks and Cabbot.
A colleague of Banks from his time in London, Detective Superintendent (later Chief Superintendent) Richard "Dirty Dick" Burgess, is another perennial character who appears in many of the novels. Initially hostile to Banks when they first met, they become good friends over time and have established a natural (if still slightly edgy) rapport by the early 21st century.
A detective inspector during his London period and a detective chief inspector in most of the books, Banks receives a promotion to detective superintendent at the time of "When the Music's Over."
Awards
The series of novels have frequently been shortlisted for a number of awards, and have won a number of the most prestigious awards in crime fiction, including the Arthur Ellis Award, the Anthony Award, and the Edgar Award.
Adaptation
In July 2010, ITV commissioned a television adaptation of the novel Aftermath, with Stephen Tompkinson playing the role of Banks. The adaptation was broadcast as two one-hour episodes, airing on 27 September and 4 October 2010. The viewing figures were successful enough for three more adaptations to be commissioned - the novels Playing With Fire, Friend Of The Devil and Cold Is The Grave - under a series title DCI Banks showing as six one-hour episodes, which started airing on September 16, 2011.