Ian Rankin
Encyclopedia
Ian Rankin, OBE
, DL
(born 28 April 1960 in Cardenden
, Fife
), is a Scottish
crime writer. His best known books are the Inspector Rebus
novels. He has also written several pieces of literary criticism
.
, Cowdenbeath
. After graduating from the University of Edinburgh, he moved to Tottenham
, London for four years and then rural France for six while he developed his career as a novelist. He was a Literature tutor at the University of Edinburgh
, where he retains an involvement with the James Tait Black Memorial Prize
.
The 'standard biography' of Rankin, a Scot
, states that before becoming a full-time novelist he worked as a grape-picker, swineherd, taxman, alcohol researcher, hi-fi journalist, college secretary and punk musician.
He lives in Edinburgh
with his wife Miranda and their two sons Jack and Kit.
and Hide and Seek
were mainstream books, more in keeping with the Scottish traditions of Robert Louis Stevenson
and even Muriel Spark
(the subject of Rankin's uncompleted Ph.D. thesis). He was disconcerted by their classification as genre fiction. Scottish novelist Allan Massie
, who tutored Rankin while Massie was writer-in-residence at the University of Edinburgh, reassured him by saying, who would want to be a dry academic writer when "they could be John Buchan?"
Rankin's Inspector Rebus
novels are set mainly in Edinburgh. They are considered major contributions to the Tartan Noir
genre. Ten of the novels were adapted as a television series on ITV, starring John Hannah
as Rebus in Series 1 & 2, with Ken Stott
taking on the role for Series 3-5.
In 2009, Rankin donated the short story "Fieldwork" to Oxfam's Ox-Tales
project, four collections of UK stories written by 38 authors. Rankin's story was published in the Earth collection.
In 2009 Rankin stated on Radio Five Live that he would start work on a five- or six-issue run on the comic book Hellblazer
, although he may turn the story into a stand-alone graphic novel
instead. The Vertigo Comics panel at WonderCon
2009 confirmed that the story would be published as a graphic novel
called Dark Entries
, the second release from the company's new Vertigo Crime imprint.
arts programme Newsnight Review. His 3-part documentary series on the subject of evil
was broadcast on Channel 4
in December 2002. In 2005 he presented a 30-minute documentary on BBC Four
called Rankin on the Staircase, in which he investigated the relationship between real-life cases and crime fiction. It was loosely based on the Michael Peterson
murder case, as covered in Jean-Xavier Lestrade's documentary series Death on the Staircase. The same year he collaborated with folk musician Jackie Leven
on the album Jackie Leven Said.
In 2007, Rankin appeared in programmes for BBC Four exploring the origins of his alter-ego character, John Rebus. Titled "Ian Rankin's Hidden Edinburgh" and "Ian Rankin Investigates Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde," Rankin looks at the origins of the character and the events that led to his creation.
In the TV show Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations, he takes a trip through Edinburgh with writer/cook Anthony Bourdain
.
He has honorary doctorates from the University of Edinburgh
, the University of Abertay Dundee
, the University of St Andrews
and, in 2005, from the University of Hull
.
Rankin's novel Exit Music was shortlisted for Theakston’s Old Peculiar Crime Novel of the Year Award 2009.
Graphic novels
Short stories
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
, DL
Deputy Lieutenant
In the United Kingdom, a Deputy Lieutenant is one of several deputies to the Lord Lieutenant of a lieutenancy area; an English ceremonial county, Welsh preserved county, Scottish lieutenancy area, or Northern Irish county borough or county....
(born 28 April 1960 in Cardenden
Cardenden
Cardenden is a Scottish town located on the South bank of the River Ore in the parish of Auchterderran, Fife. It is approximately North-West of Kirkcaldy. Cardenden was named in 1848 by the Edinburgh and Northern Railway for its new railway station...
, Fife
Fife
Fife is a council area and former county of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries to Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire...
), is a Scottish
Scottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
crime writer. His best known books are the Inspector Rebus
Inspector Rebus
The Inspector Rebus books are a series of detective novels by the Scottish author Ian Rankin. The novels, centred on the title character Detective Inspector John Rebus, are mostly based in and around Edinburgh.-Content and style:...
novels. He has also written several pieces of literary criticism
Literary criticism
Literary criticism is the study, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. Modern literary criticism is often informed by literary theory, which is the philosophical discussion of its methods and goals...
.
Background
He attended Beath High SchoolBeath High School
Beath High School is a non-denominational state secondary school located in Cowdenbeath, Fife. The school is run by Fife Council and the current roll stands at around 1200 pupils aged from 11 to 18. It serves the towns of Cowdenbeath and Kelty as well as the villages of Crossgates, Hill of Beath...
, Cowdenbeath
Cowdenbeath
Cowdenbeath is a town and burgh in west Fife, Scotland. It is 5 miles north-east of Dunfermline and 18 miles north of the capital, Edinburgh. The town grew up around the extensive coalfields of the area and became a Police Burgh in 1890...
. After graduating from the University of Edinburgh, he moved to Tottenham
Tottenham
Tottenham is an area of the London Borough of Haringey, England, situated north north east of Charing Cross.-Toponymy:Tottenham is believed to have been named after Tota, a farmer, whose hamlet was mentioned in the Domesday Book; hence Tota's hamlet became Tottenham...
, London for four years and then rural France for six while he developed his career as a novelist. He was a Literature tutor at the University of Edinburgh
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1583, is a public research university located in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university is deeply embedded in the fabric of the city, with many of the buildings in the historic Old Town belonging to the university...
, where he retains an involvement with the James Tait Black Memorial Prize
James Tait Black Memorial Prize
Founded in 1919, the James Tait Black Memorial Prizes are among the oldest and most prestigious book prizes awarded for literature written in the English language and are Britain's oldest literary awards...
.
The 'standard biography' of Rankin, a Scot
Scottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
, states that before becoming a full-time novelist he worked as a grape-picker, swineherd, taxman, alcohol researcher, hi-fi journalist, college secretary and punk musician.
He lives in Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
with his wife Miranda and their two sons Jack and Kit.
Writing
Rankin did not set out to be a crime writer. He thought his first novels Knots and CrossesKnots and Crosses
Knots and Crosses is a 1987 crime novel by Ian Rankin. It is the first of the Inspector Rebus novels. It was written while Rankin was a postgraduate student at the University of Edinburgh...
and Hide and Seek
Hide and Seek (novel)
Hide and Seek is a 1991 crime novel by Ian Rankin. It is the second of the Inspector Rebus novels.-Plot summary:Detective Inspector John Rebus finds the body of an overdosed drug addict in an Edinburgh squat, laid out cross-like on the floor, between two burned-down candles, with a five-pointed...
were mainstream books, more in keeping with the Scottish traditions of Robert Louis Stevenson
Robert Louis Stevenson
Robert Louis Balfour Stevenson was a Scottish novelist, poet, essayist and travel writer. His best-known books include Treasure Island, Kidnapped, and Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde....
and even Muriel Spark
Muriel Spark
Dame Muriel Spark, DBE was an award-winning Scottish novelist. In 2008 The Times newspaper named Spark in its list of "the 50 greatest British writers since 1945".-Early life:...
(the subject of Rankin's uncompleted Ph.D. thesis). He was disconcerted by their classification as genre fiction. Scottish novelist Allan Massie
Allan Massie
Allan Massie is a well-known Scottish journalist, sports writer and novelist.-Early life:Born in 1938 in Singapore, where his father was a rubber planter for Sime Darby, Massie spent his childhood in Aberdeenshire...
, who tutored Rankin while Massie was writer-in-residence at the University of Edinburgh, reassured him by saying, who would want to be a dry academic writer when "they could be John Buchan?"
Rankin's Inspector Rebus
Inspector Rebus
The Inspector Rebus books are a series of detective novels by the Scottish author Ian Rankin. The novels, centred on the title character Detective Inspector John Rebus, are mostly based in and around Edinburgh.-Content and style:...
novels are set mainly in Edinburgh. They are considered major contributions to the Tartan Noir
Tartan Noir
Tartan Noir is a form of crime fiction particular to Scotland and Scottish writers. It has its roots in Scottish literature but borrows elements from elsewhere, including from the work of American crime writers of the second half of the twentieth century, especially of the hard-boiled genre, and of...
genre. Ten of the novels were adapted as a television series on ITV, starring John Hannah
John Hannah (actor)
John David Hannah is a Scottish actor of film and television. He has appeared in Stephen Sommers' Mummy Series, Richard Curtis' Four Weddings and a Funeral and Sliding Doors with Gwyneth Paltrow...
as Rebus in Series 1 & 2, with Ken Stott
Ken Stott
Kenneth Campbell "Ken" Stott is a Scottish actor, particularly known in the United Kingdom for his many roles in television.-Early life:...
taking on the role for Series 3-5.
In 2009, Rankin donated the short story "Fieldwork" to Oxfam's Ox-Tales
Ox-Tales
Ox-Tales refers to four anthologies of short stories written by 38 of the UK's best known authors. All the authors donated their stories to Oxfam...
project, four collections of UK stories written by 38 authors. Rankin's story was published in the Earth collection.
In 2009 Rankin stated on Radio Five Live that he would start work on a five- or six-issue run on the comic book Hellblazer
Hellblazer
Hellblazer is a contemporary horror comic book series, originally published by DC Comics, and subsequently by the Vertigo imprint since March 1993, the month the imprint was introduced, where it remains to this day...
, although he may turn the story into a stand-alone graphic novel
Graphic novel
A graphic novel is a narrative work in which the story is conveyed to the reader using sequential art in either an experimental design or in a traditional comics format...
instead. The Vertigo Comics panel at WonderCon
WonderCon
WonderCon is an annual comic book, science fiction, and motion picture convention, held in the San Francisco Bay Area since 1987.The convention was conceived by retailer John Barrett and originally held in the Oakland Convention Center, where it remained until 2003, when it moved to San...
2009 confirmed that the story would be published as a graphic novel
Graphic novel
A graphic novel is a narrative work in which the story is conveyed to the reader using sequential art in either an experimental design or in a traditional comics format...
called Dark Entries
Dark Entries (comics)
Dark Entries is a 2009 original graphic novel written by Ian Rankin, and is the author's earliest work in the comic field. It was one of two books to launch Vertigo's Vertigo Crime line, along with Brian Azzarello's Filthy Rich...
, the second release from the company's new Vertigo Crime imprint.
Controversy
In 2007, Rankin was criticised for saying, "the people writing the most graphic violence today are women. They are mostly lesbians as well, which I find interesting".Documentaries
He is a regular contributor to the BBC TwoBBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
arts programme Newsnight Review. His 3-part documentary series on the subject of evil
Evil
Evil is the violation of, or intent to violate, some moral code. Evil is usually seen as the dualistic opposite of good. Definitions of evil vary along with analysis of its root motive causes, however general actions commonly considered evil include: conscious and deliberate wrongdoing,...
was broadcast on Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
in December 2002. In 2005 he presented a 30-minute documentary on BBC Four
BBC Four
BBC Four is a British television network operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation and available to digital television viewers on Freeview, IPTV, satellite and cable....
called Rankin on the Staircase, in which he investigated the relationship between real-life cases and crime fiction. It was loosely based on the Michael Peterson
Michael Peterson (author)
Michael Iver Peterson is a fiction writer and politician. In 2003, he was convicted of the murder of his wife, Kathleen Peterson.-Personal life:...
murder case, as covered in Jean-Xavier Lestrade's documentary series Death on the Staircase. The same year he collaborated with folk musician Jackie Leven
Jackie Leven
Jackie Leven was a Scottish songwriter and folk musician. After starting his career as a folk musician in the late 1960s, he first found success with new wave band Doll by Doll...
on the album Jackie Leven Said.
In 2007, Rankin appeared in programmes for BBC Four exploring the origins of his alter-ego character, John Rebus. Titled "Ian Rankin's Hidden Edinburgh" and "Ian Rankin Investigates Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde," Rankin looks at the origins of the character and the events that led to his creation.
In the TV show Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations, he takes a trip through Edinburgh with writer/cook Anthony Bourdain
Anthony Bourdain
Anthony Michael "Tony" Bourdain is an American chef, author and television personality. He is well known for his 2000 book Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly, and is the host of Travel Channel's culinary and cultural adventure program Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations.A...
.
Awards and honours
- Elected Hawthornden Fellow
- Won the Chandler-Fulbright Award.
- Two Crime Writers' AssociationCrime Writers' AssociationThe Crime Writers Association is a writers' association in the United Kingdom. Founded by John Creasey in 1953, it is currently chaired by Peter James and claims 450+ members....
(CWA) Dagger prizes for short stories - 1997 the CWA Macallan Gold DaggerGold DaggerThe Gold Dagger Award was an award given annually by the Crime Writers' Association for the best crime novel of the year.For its first five years, the organization's top honor was known as the Crossed Red Herring Award....
for Fiction for Black and BlueBlack and Blue (novel)Black and Blue is a 1997 crime novel by the Scots author Ian Rankin. The eighth of the Inspector Rebus novels, it was the first to be adapted in the Rebus television series starring John Hannah, airing in 2000....
(which was also short-listed for the Mystery Writers of AmericaMystery Writers of AmericaMystery Writers of America is an organization for mystery writers, based in New York.The organization was founded in 1945 by Clayton Rawson, Anthony Boucher, Lawrence Treat, and Brett Halliday....
Edgar AwardEdgar AwardThe Edgar Allan Poe Awards , named after Edgar Allan Poe, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America...
for best novel). - 2002, made an Officer of the Order of the British EmpireOrder of the British EmpireThe Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
in the Golden JubileeGolden JubileeA Golden Jubilee is a celebration held to mark a 50th anniversary.- In Thailand :King Bhumibol Adulyadej, the world's longest-reigning monarch, celebrated his Golden Jubilee on 9 June 1996.- In the Commonwealth Realms :...
Queen's Birthday Honours List for services to literature. - 2004, Edgar Award for Resurrection MenResurrection MenResurrection Men is a 2002 novel by Ian Rankin. It is the thirteenth of the Inspector Rebus novels.-Plot summary:Detective Inspector John Rebus is thrown off a murder inquiry, just days after the brutal death of an Edinburgh art dealer, for throwing a cup of tea at DCS Gill Templer...
. - 2005, CWA Cartier Diamond Dagger to mark a lifetime's achievement in crime writing.
- 2008, ITV3 Crime Thriller Award for Author of the Year, for Exit Music.
He has honorary doctorates from the University of Edinburgh
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1583, is a public research university located in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university is deeply embedded in the fabric of the city, with many of the buildings in the historic Old Town belonging to the university...
, the University of Abertay Dundee
University of Abertay Dundee
The University of Abertay Dundee, usually known simply as Abertay University, is a modern university in Dundee, Scotland.- History :The University of Abertay Dundee was created in 1994, under government legislation granting the title University to the Dundee Institute of Technology...
, the University of St Andrews
University of St Andrews
The University of St Andrews, informally referred to as "St Andrews", is the oldest university in Scotland and the third oldest in the English-speaking world after Oxford and Cambridge. The university is situated in the town of St Andrews, Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. It was founded between...
and, in 2005, from the University of Hull
University of Hull
The University of Hull, known informally as Hull University, is an English university, founded in 1927, located in Hull, a city in the East Riding of Yorkshire...
.
Rankin's novel Exit Music was shortlisted for Theakston’s Old Peculiar Crime Novel of the Year Award 2009.
Other publications
Recordings- Jackie Leven Said (Cooking vinyl, 2005), with Jackie LevenJackie LevenJackie Leven was a Scottish songwriter and folk musician. After starting his career as a folk musician in the late 1960s, he first found success with new wave band Doll by Doll...
- The Sixth Stone (CD, 2007), with Aidan MoffatAidan MoffatAidan John Moffat is a Scottish vocalist and musician, best known for his work with Malcolm Middleton in Arab Strap.-Early life:...
, on Ballads of the BookBallads of the BookBallads of the Book is a studio album, released on 5 March 2007, on Chemikal Underground. The project was curated by Roddy Woomble, and features collaborations between Scottish musicians and Scottish writers. The album is considered a "joint effort" by all those involved... - This Has Been the Death of Us (7th Realm Of Teenage Heaven, 2009), with Saint Jude's InfirmarySaint Jude's InfirmarySaint Jude's Infirmary are a Scottish indie band originally from Fife but now based in Edinburgh. Fans of the band include Ian Rankin and Jack Vettriano both of whom appear on the band's second album This Has Been the Death of Us released on the 19th October 2009 on the 7th Realm Of Teenage Heaven...
- The Third Gentleman (BBC Broadcast October 25, 1997. 87mins.) Black comedy set in 1790s Edinburgh.
Graphic novels
- Dark EntriesDark Entries (comics)Dark Entries is a 2009 original graphic novel written by Ian Rankin, and is the author's earliest work in the comic field. It was one of two books to launch Vertigo's Vertigo Crime line, along with Brian Azzarello's Filthy Rich...
(September 2009) with art by Werther Dell'Edera. Published by Vertigo Crime and starring John ConstantineJohn ConstantineJohn Constantine is a fictional character, an occult detective anti-hero in comic books published by DC Comics, mostly under the Vertigo imprint. The character first appeared in Swamp Thing #37 , and was created by Alan Moore, Steve Bissette, John Totleben and Rick Veitch...
of HellblazerHellblazerHellblazer is a contemporary horror comic book series, originally published by DC Comics, and subsequently by the Vertigo imprint since March 1993, the month the imprint was introduced, where it remains to this day...
.
Short stories
- An Afternoon (1984) (published in New Writing Scotland)
- Voyeurism (1985) (published in New Writing Scotland)
- Colony (1986) (published in New Writing Scotland)
- Territory (1987) (published in Scottish Short Stories 1987)
- Trip Trap (1992) (published in 1st Culprit)
- Marked for Death (1992) (published in Constable New Crimes 1)
- Well Shot (1993) (published in 2nd Culprit)
- Someone Got to Eddie (1994) (published in 3rd Culprit)
- A deep hole (1994) (published in London Noir)
- Adventures in Babysitting (1995) (published in No Alibi and in Master's Choice Two)
- Natural Selection (1996) (published in Fresh Blood)
- Auld Lang Syne (1997) (published in The Orion Book of Murder)
- Principles of Accounts (1997) (published in Mystery's Most Wanted)
- Death is Not the EndDeath Is Not the EndDeath Is Not The End is a 1998 novella by crime-writer Ian Rankin. It features his popular protagonist Inspector John Rebus. Originally published as a standalone volume, it is now available in the Beggars Banquet short story collection. The story from the novella was later expanded as part of a...
(1998) (novella later expanded into Dead Souls) - The Hanged Man (2000) (published in The World's finest mystery and crime stories)
- Saint Nicked (2003) (published in 2 numbers of Radio Times)
- Soft Spot (2005) (published in Dangerous Women)
- Not just another Saturday (August 2005) (written for SNIP, a charity organisation)
- Sinner: justified (2006) (published in Superhumanatural)
Criticism
- Horsley, Lee, The Noir Thriller (Houndmills & New York: Palgrave, 2001).
- Lanchester, John, ‘Rebusworld’, in London Review of Books 22.9 (27/4/2000), pp. 18–20.
- Lennard, JohnJohn LennardJohn Lennard is Professor of British and American Literature at the University of the West Indies, Mona, Jamaica, and a freelance academic and writer.-Biography:...
, 'Ian Rankin', in Jay Parini, ed., British Writers Supplement X (New York & London: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 2004), pp. 243–60 - Mandel, Ernest, Delightful Murder: A Social History of the Crime Story (Leichhardt, NSW, & London: Pluto Press, 1984).
- Nicol, Christopher, 'Ian Rankin's 'Black & Blue' Scotnote No.24 (Glasgow:ASLS Publications, 2008)
- Ogle, Tina, ‘Crime on Screen’, in The Observer (London), 16/4/2000, Screen p. 8.
- Plain, Gill, Ian Rankin’s Black and Blue (London & New York: Continuum, 2002)
- Plain, Gillian, ‘Ian Rankin: A Bibliography’, in Crime Time 28 (2002), pp. 16–20.
- Robinson, David, ‘Mystery Man: In Search of the real Ian Rankin’, in The Scotsman 10/3/2001, S2Weekend, pp. 1–4.
- Rowland, Susan, ‘Gothic Crimes: A Literature of Terror and Horror’, in From Agatha Christie to Ruth Rendell (Houndmills & New York: Palgrave, 2001), pp. 110–34.
External links
- Ian Rankin's new novel sees the Return of Malcolm Fox 12 April 2011 (British Council)
- Macavity's Interview
- Guardian Books profile, with links to further articles.
- The Reykjavík Grapevine Interview
- Ian Rankin at Edinburgh Central Library, Oct 2010 (video interview in several parts)
- CNN interview with Ian Rankin
- 2011 radio interview at The Bat Segundo ShowThe Bat Segundo ShowThe Bat Segundo Show is a podcast based in New York run by writer and literary critic Edward Champion.The program features comprehensive interviews with prominent figures in arts and culture, with a special focus on literature. Past guests have included David Mitchell, David Lynch, Amy Sedaris,...
(1 hour) - Two BooksfromScotland.com interviews with Ian Rankin
- Ian Rankin's introduction to the 2007 edition of James HoggJames HoggJames Hogg was a Scottish poet and novelist who wrote in both Scots and English.-Early life:James Hogg was born in a small farm near Ettrick, Scotland in 1770 and was baptized there on 9 December, his actual date of birth having never been recorded...
's The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified SinnerThe Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified SinnerThe Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner, is a novel that was written by the Scottish author James Hogg and published anonymously in...