"John Banks is one of the UK's most prolific audiobook narrators, working for the likes of Big Finish, Audible, Random House and Games Workshop.

He is a true multi-voice, creating everything from monsters to marauding aliens.

He is also an accomplished stage and TV actor."

audible.co.uk 2018

Hello...

...I'm John Banks - welcome to my website.

The majority of my working life has been spent in the theatre with companies including
York Theatre Royal, Cheltenham Everyman, Sheffield Crucible, Bristol Old Vic, Manchester Royal Exchange and the National Theatre in London.

Television work includes Emmerdale, Coronation Street, and 'Allo, Allo!'. I have also worked on a number of radio drama and comedy productions with the BBC.

Since March 2009, I have enjoyed playing a huge variety of characters in more than 270* audio-drama stories with Big Finish Productions, together with The Black Library/Games Workshop, details of which can be found in the postings below.


There are also details listed here of the 214* audio books & stories I've recorded since March 2013,
including the unabridged New Revised Standard Version of The Bible, for companies including audible.co.uk, Hachette, Audible Studios, Podium Audio Publishing, HarperCollins, RNIB, W.F. Howes, Little Brown Group, Penguin Random House, Games Workshop, Orion, Fantom Films & Ladbroke Audio.

(*figures at April 2021)

I hope you find something of interest here and come back soon for further updates.


For all posts, reviews and audio samples, please scroll down...

The Runewar Saga: Book 2

The Runewar Saga: Book 2
The Crown of Fire & Fury

The Botanist

The Botanist
Washington Poe Series: Book 5

Skaven Deathmaster

The Babel Books

The Babel Books
The Fall of Babel - click image above for link to audible

Doctor Who: Back To Earth

Throne of Light: Dawn of Fire Book 4

Throne of Light: Dawn of Fire Book 4
Release Date: 13th November 2021

Soul Wars

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Saturday 29 October 2016

Horus Heresy anthology

Another Saturday and another Saturday release from Games Workshop - 'raay! In fact, as far as my contribution to this collection goes ( I've asterisked the stories I've read ), it's really a repetion of previously released material. There's an almost bewildering variety of 'bundled' stories to be had for the listener, keen to collect absolutely everything from The Black Library and Games Workshop, so just to tap into that sense of completeness, here are details of this latest anthology:

Books 22-24: Unabridged Audiobook Collection

A Horus Heresy audiobook collection

Traitorous brothers unite to take on mankind's Imperium not once but twice in a collection of audiobook adventures that encompass the Shadow Crusade that devastates Ultramar and an even more shadowy mission into the Eye of Terror – plus 'Shadows of Treachery', which collects two novellas and five short stories.


These stories all delve into the previously untold stories of the Heresy, filling in the gaps between Isstvan and Terra for several Legions, and showing the lengths to which the Traitor Primarchs will go to achieve their victory over their former brothers.

Two primarch team-ups change the face of the galaxy! Fulgrim and Perturabo team up for a mission that will prove the apotheosis of one and the beginning of the end for the other, while Angron and Lorgar bring ruin to the Ultramarines as their Shadow Crusade unfolds. Meanwhile, the anthology Shadows of Treachery brings tales from across the Imperium, from the killing fields of Isstvan V to the Iron Warriors' battlefleet where the Imperial Fists fight for survival, and the halls of the Imperial Palace itself where Rogal Dorn ponders the Imperium's future.




  The Crimson Fist by John French
  The Dark King by Graham McNeill *
  The Lightning Tower by Dan Abnett *
  The Kaban Project by Graham McNeill *
  Raven's Flight by Gav Thorpe *
  Death of a Silversmith by Graham McNeill *
  Prince of Crows by Aaron Dembski-Bowden
Angel Exterminatus by Graham McNeill
Betrayer by Aaron Dembski-Bowden

Narrated by John Banks, Jonathan Keeble and David Timson & Produced by Matt Renshaw

 Running time approximately 48 hours. 




* * * * *

I've been very busy in the recording studio over the last few weeks and there's much more to be done in the coming weeks; next week however, I'm filming a television drama documentary, in which I play an American cop (!). The audition was great fun and I hope the actual job will be equally enjoyable; I will of course, give further details when I'm allowed to talk about the project more fully. 

To finish on a tec note: I mentioned the non-functioning 'slideshow' feature last week and sadly, it will no longer work as part of this website, as the Picasa photo web site is no longer being updated and is unsupported now by Google. Maybe there'll be something better coming along soon to replace it; we shall see!

In the meantime that's...

...all for now, more just as soon as it happens!

Saturday 22 October 2016

Vox Tenebris

Another quick update release, this time on a very interesting audio drama from Games Workshop and here are some details:

Vox Tenebris

A War Zone Fenris audio drama

In the midst of the daemonic assault on the Fenris system, a Space Wolf and Dark Angel must overcome their enmity and work together if either is to survive.


When the Fenris system is overrun by the forces of Chaos, the Imperium rallies to its defence, and Space Marines from many Chapters arrive to lend their aid to the beleaguered defenders. The battle to reclaim the worlds of the Space Wolves is waged on many levels – in space, on land and in the very seas themselves.

A Space Wolf and a Dark Angel must join forces when the rest of their strikeforce is slaughtered by daemons, deep underground. Unless they can find their way through the underworld back to the surface, they are doomed – but the trials that face them will test them to their very limit.

 Performed by John Banks, Steve Conlin and Toby Longworth.

Written by Robbie MacNiven & Produced by Matt Renshaw.
Running time 65 minutes.

*****
 
For some reason, the 'slideshow' feature which used to be situated at the bottom of this web page, has been removed. It's annoying, to say the least, that possibly as the result of a software update, a widget has ceased to function. I'll try to get it back up and running again, but it may now be impossible...


...all for now, more just as soon as it happens!

Saturday 15 October 2016

Bleeding Shadows...

And on we go. The last eighteen or so months has been a very busy time in the recording studio for me and as a consequence, lots of audio stuff is now being released. It's tricky to work out an exact correlation between recording and publication, as some recordings have a longer production process than others. My recording of The Bible for example is still caught up in that process; I had originally thought it might have been published back in May. But as you can see from the 'new releases' area to the left of this page, highlighted in bright green, even in the last few months of the year, new work is still being published - and often to my surprise.

This week has seen the release of two new recordings; one, an anthology of short stories from Games Workshop and the other, an intriguing mystery, Bleeding Heart Square by Andrew Taylor, which is available to download from audible.co.uk or Amazon.

Here are some details of both recordings:




1934, London. Into the decaying cul-de-sac of Bleeding Heart Square steps aristocratic Lydia Langstone fleeing an abusive marriage. 

However, unknown to Lydia, a dark mystery haunts Bleeding Heart Square. What happened to Miss Penhow, the middle-aged spinster who owns the house and who vanished four years earlier? Why is a seedy plain-clothes policeman obsessively watching the square? What is making struggling journalist Rory Wentwood so desperate to contact Miss Penhow? And why are parcels of rotting hearts being sent to Joseph Serridge, the last person to see Miss Penhow alive?





A Horus Heresy anthology

From the battlefields of Phall and Isstvan, to the haunted shadows of Terra itself – the Horus Heresy rages on across the galaxy in this collection of short stories and novellas.


This anthology spans the entire Horus Heresy, with short stories from Dan Abnett, Graham McNeill and Gav Thorpe, as well as two brand new novella-length tales. Learn the fate of Rogal Dorn's fleet originally sent to Isstvan III and descend deeper into the darkness of the Night Lords Legion.

Performed by John Banks* Jonathan Keeble and David Timson, Produced by Matthew Renshaw 

This anthology contains the following stories:

The Crimson Fist by John French
The Dark King by Graham McNeill *
The Lightning Tower by Dan Abnett *
The Kaban Project by Graham McNeill *
Raven's Flight by Gav Thorpe *
Death of a Silversmith by Graham McNeill *
Prince of Crows by Aaron Dembski-Bowden

From the battlefields of Phall and Isstvan, to the haunted shadows of Terra itself - the greatest war in the history of mankind rages on. While the traitor Legions continue their campaign of terror across the galaxy, preparations are made for the defence of the Imperial Palace and the final, inevitable reckoning that must yet come between Horus and the Emperor...

Running time: 11 hours and 44 minutes

I'll see if I can find some audio clips to go along with these titles, just to give a flavour of the content, although alas, that's not always possible. In the meantime, my latest news is that I started recording a series of classic sci-fi novels on Friday, which will hopefully see the light of day early in the new year, so much more on that subject nearer the time of publication - and having had a lot of fun with the Games Workshop crew recently, I'm recording more with them next week. top secret at the moment of course, but patience will always be rewarded - so I'm told!

Thanks for stopping by...

...all for now, more just as soon as it happens!

Sunday 9 October 2016

ORB SCEPTRE THRONE

Good afternoon! Much to relay of recent and future adventures, but for the moment, here's a 'newsflash' update to note the release of this audio book:

The tumult of great powers colliding has passed, and the city of Darujhistan and its citizens can at last get on with what matters: trading, bickering, politicking and enjoying all the good things in life. However, not all are ready to leave the past behind.


A treasure hunter digging amongst the burial grounds that surround the city is about to uncover a hidden crypt. He will open the last of a series of sealed vaults - the one that no other dared touch - and in so doing set free something so terrifying that the knowledge of its interment may have been systematically wiped from all history.

Fortune hunters are also at work far to the south. When a fragment of Moon's Spawn, once the home of Anomander Rake, Son of Darkness, crashed into the Rivan Sea, it created a chain of small islands. Legends and rumours already surround them. The most potent of these is that here is hidden the Throne of Night, claimed by some to be the seat of Mother Dark herself.


Either way, all who seek this ancient artefact - renegade mages, hardened mercenaries, even a Malazan army deserter - believe it will bestow unlimited power upon the eventual possessor. The stakes are high, greed is rife, betrayal inevitable, and murder and chaos lie in wait....


Written by Ian C Esslemont, produced by Neil Gardner and narrated by me. 

Running time 25 hours, 23 minutes

A Random House Audiobook, available now from audible.co.uk


...all for now, more just as soon as it happens!

Sunday 2 October 2016

October-fest...

Once again, my apologies for the lack of updates over the last few weeks; my excuse as ever, is that I've been immersed in preparation and recording. Details of what I've been doing will certainly appear here as soon as possible, although alas, not in this posting, as the intensity of work continues and I'm in the studio for the next several days. Before the middle of next month, I'll be recording four audio dramas and six audio books and time, as you can imagine, is at an absolute premium.

Such a short update, but there is something I can mention immediately, which is the release of an anthology of Warhammer stories that appear now as a single edition and here are some details:

Corax: A Horus Heresy anthology

The Lord of Ravens, Master of Deliverance, Primarch Corus Corvax of the Raven Guard takes centre stage in a collection of works by Gav Thorpe that explore his campaign of vengeance against Horus' allies and his desperate attempts to hold his Legion together.


After Isstvan, after Deliverance, the Raven Guard still endure. Their primarch Corvus Corax has rallied countless warriors to his banner, striking back at the forces of the Warmaster on every front – from the degenerate hereteks of the Mechanicum to the cruel legionaries of the Sons of Horus, none shall escape his wrath. But although Corax has managed to stall the physical corruption of his own Space Marines, what of their spirit? And what sinister end must await those who dwell forever in the darkness?

This anthology contains all of Gav Thorpe’s tales of the Raven Guard in the Horus Heresy – the novellas Soulforge and Ravenlord, and short stories ‘The Shadowmasters’, ‘The Value of Fear’ and ‘Raptor’. Also included is the brand new novella Weregeld, taking Corax’s legend to its grim conclusion.


 Narrated by Gareth Armstrong and John Banks  

Produced by Matthew Renshaw & Written by Gav Thorpe 

Audiobook running time 12 hours and 49 minutes

 * * * * *

Also,  released on the 6th October from Audible.co.uk, is my audio book version of Ian C. Esslemont's Novel of The Malazan Empire: Orb, Sceptre, Throne. 


...all for now, more just as soon as it happens!

Dalek Universe 2

Kragnos Broken Realms

Age of Sigmar Dominion

The Moggotkin of Nurgle

Kragnos Broken Realms

Dawn of Fire Book 1: Avenging Son

The Lore of Direchasm

Direchasm

A C'tan Shard Rises 3

Indomitus: Necrons 2

A Lord Among the Stars 1

Angels of Death Preview

Ultramarines

Psychic Awakening

Warcry: Death or Glory

Warhammer 40,000

Flight. Redefined.

Reviews & comments:

The Malazan Empire

Over the course of this 8 book series, the amazing John Banks has had to create and voice 648 distinct characters!

Neil Gardner - producer

The Door In The Wall & War of The Worlds

Not often I buy another version of an audiobook I own, but after hearing John Banks' narration of The Door in the Wall by Ladbroke Audio, I had to buy their version of The War of the Worlds. Banks has a great reading voice.

Andy Frankham-Allen - writer

The Books of Babel: Senlin Ascends, Arm of The Sphinx & The Hod King

Mr. Banks does superb work, and I recommend the audiobooks wholeheartedly!

Josiah Bancroft - writer

Mervyn Stone: The Axeman Cometh

John Banks is a voice genius...

Nev Fountain - writer

Mervyn Stone... played by the note-perfect John Banks.

Matt Hills - Reviews in Time and Space

Dr. Who: The Sleeping City

I also must draw attention to John Banks who is an exceptional voice artist and in this one story performs more characters that I can count. ... it is listening to episodes like this one that really do let his talents shine through.

Tony Jones - Red Rocket Rising

Highlander:

...playing several parts, was the brilliant Big Finish regular John Banks - it was as if there were about 40 different actors in the other booth.

James Moran - writer

I went for the best of the best and brought in voice artiste extraordinaire John Banks.

Paul Spragg - producer

Vienna:

...also features the mind - bogglingly versatile and reliable John Banks

Jonathan Morris - writer

Dead Funny:

The acting is first rate… wonderfully played by John Banks as Richard – his impersonation of Eric Morecambe is worth the admission money alone.

Beverly Greenberg: Bolton Evening News

Mr. Happiness:

This early and unfamiliar play by David Mamet is a character study of a 1930s radio counsellor, dispensing suave advice to his devoted listeners. John Banks brings out the wry comedy of this – comedy quite unappreciated by the character – with a clever range of gesture and vocal tone.

Jeremy Kingston: The Times


All My Sons:

This is a beautifully crafted piece ...and it affords a wonderful opportunity for John Readman* to do his All-American Boy act as Chris Keller. This most polished and well observed performance as the blighted son of a blighted father must rank as one of his finest accomplishments yet. ( * see Profile)

The Stage

The Ordeals of Sherlock Holmes

Kudos should also go to John Banks. Lestrade can be a thankless part, but Banks rose to the challenge, playing a pivotal role in this decades long arc.

Raissa Devereux - SciFiPulse

The Judgement of Sherlock Holmes

John Banks is multi-tasking, both as the superb Lestrade and also the villainous and no doubt moustache twirling Sebastian Moran. They sound completely different and I bow to his talent.

Sue Davies - SFcrowsnest


Further reviews and comments are included with specific postings throughout the site.

The War Doctor

The War Doctor
December 2015