"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 2 November 2019

November

Good afternoon dear, patient reader; with no update since the end of September, I can only apologise and say ‘thank you’ for sticking with it and coming back to visit the site.

As is often the way, when things get busy, my updates here have to take a bit of a ‘back seat’, which is unfortunate, but ultimately good, because it means that at some point, there’ll be something, hopefully of interest, to talk about.

September was quite an exceptional month, which saw 12 audio releases, including all 215 hours of The House of Niccolo by Dorothy Dunnett. I was recently asked to write an article for the Dorothy Dunnett Society quarterly magazine, Whispering Gallery, to give an idea of what my experience of recording the books had been. The magazine, along with some, if not all, of my article, is scheduled for a December publication date. At some point after publication, I will also post the article here. At around 4,000 words, I talk about the specific experience of the Niccolo books, but also take a slightly broader view of the whole process of audio performing. If the idea of a more ‘in depth’ posting sounds appealing, perhaps you might like to check back in and give it a read.

Last month was a bit odd in a way; a month of two halves, the first part taken up with extended audio book preparation and the second, with lots of intense prep, followed by the recording of two audio books in four days (!) and some audio drama, which concluded at the end of last week. I now have to prep another audio book, which is scheduled to record during the week of the 11th. I can’t give any more details away at the moment alas and for the usual reasons; there’s lots I’d love to mention, but will have to be patient and wait for official marketing to properly launch each individual production.

In the last posting, I said I’d come back to say more about the release of Barbarians by Stephen P. Kershaw. I think my intention was to reflect on how exacting non-fiction can be and how preparation can be even more time consuming than fiction. Of course, non-fiction, by definition, means that featured names and places actually exist, or did exist at some point and therefore, even greater care has to be taken to ensure they are pronounced authentically.

In the 9th April posting, I talked about the prep and recording of In The Closet Of TheVatican and how tricky it was to get personal and place names ‘right’. I have to say, it was just as time consuming and tricky to research the pronunciation of such personal and place names for A Certain Idea Of France, running at 35 hours - 19 minutes which, unsurprisingly, contained lots of  French!

Articulating the vast array of names that featured in Barbarians was even more challenging. I am grateful to producer Neil Gardner, who contacted Dr. James Harland of the University of Tübingen, to help me with a written and spoken pronunciation guide - 30 A4 pages of names and places, all of which had to be assimilated and articulated fluently. I am also grateful to Susan Omand, who proof-listened to what I’d done and who highlighted any errors I’d made, so that I could go back to the studio and correct them. I haven’t heard either recording in full yet, though I fervently hope to be forgiven for any incorrect pronunciations that might have slipped through the net; we all did our very best!


* * * * *

And so, to wrap up for now; I’m not sure what might be released this month, though there’s a particularly exciting project in the pipeline which, after many months of work, might actually soon see the light of day. I’m certainly aware of a couple of releases scheduled for December - though we shall all have to wait and see!

In the meantime, I can’t publish a posting consisting only of massive blocks of text, so why don’t I just insert this fantastic image to appease - and tease...?





...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