A Quick One on The Side - with Ian Rankin

Welcome to today's guest writer, Ian Rankin, who probably needs no introduction, except for those readers who are from another planet.

Ian was born in Cardenden in the Kingdom of Fife. He attended Beath High in Cowdenbeath and later graduated from the University of Edinburgh. He spent three years writing novels when he was supposed to working towards a Ph.D. in Scottish Literature. The subject of his unfinished thesis was Muriel Spark. Ian wrote his first Rebus novel in 1987. He went on to become a highly successful writer, with 17 D.I. John Rebus novels, translated in 22 languages, and two Malcolm Fox novels so far, as well as some standalone novels and short story collections. Ian has numerous degrees, has more 'Daggers' than most villains, was elected a Hawthornden Fellow and was awarded an OBE for services to literature, an honour that he chose to receive in Edinburgh rather than at Buckingham Palace. He is also regular contributor to BBC2's 'Newsnight Review'. Ian is also a regular patron of the Oxford Bar, known locally as the Ox. I must confess that there are parts of this interview that came from conversations with Ian in the Ox during the drinking of the odd pint or two of Deuchars IPA.

So here goes, ten quick ones for Ian.....

Who is your favourite author?
"Muriel Spark."
(The award winning Scottish novelist and subject of Ian's unfinished thesis.)

What would be your favourite book read?
"The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark."
(This story of six 10 year old Edinburgh schoolgirls assigned Jean Brodie as their teacher was made into a very successful film featuring Maggie Smith.)

Who is your favourite band?
"The Rolling Stones."
(Ian once travelled to London to get Keith Richards to sign a copy of his autobiography.)
"I'm not sure that he realised who I was."

What is your most listened to album?
"Solid Air by John Martyn."
(John Martyn was once described in The Times as 'An electrifying guitarist and singer whose music blurred the boundaries between folk, jazz, rock and blues'.)
Ian is a great collector of vinyl albums and singles. He once told me "No, I don't know how many I've got. They aren't categorised and they are in boxes in various locations around the house. It can take me up to an hour to find a specific album, but it's always worth it in the end."

What has been the best gig/concert that you have attended?
"The Sensational Alex Harvey Band circa 1976."

What is your favourite food?
"Fish and Chips."

What would be your favourite holiday destination?
"Black Isle, Scotland."
(Of course, Black Isle is not an island. It is a peninsula in the Scottish Highlands, just to the north of Inverness.)

What would be the most autographs you've ever signed in one session?
"I occasionally sign 3,000 books in a day at the warehouse when a new book is being launched. In Edinburgh last December I signed 300 books one lunchtime at a bookshop."

Have you ever been mistaken for someone else?
"Iain Banks."
(Iain Banks is also a Scottish novelist born in Fife.)

How often do you get recognised?
"In Edinburgh, it's a daily occurrence. Outside of Scotland I am rarely recognised."


To finish I want to share two of my own favourite stories, with Ian's approval.

In one of the ITV adaptations of one of Ian's Rebus novels, Ian had a small cameo appearance. He was on screen for a few seconds in pouring rain, running up an alley and shouting 'Hey!' During his visit to the Rebus set, Ian met the actor Ken Stott, who played Rebus after John Hannah.
"It was quite funny really. Ken Stott was introduced to me as the author of the Rebus novels and Ken asked me what my day job was."

On the subject of recognition, there was one occasion when Ian was not recognised in the Oxford Bar.
"I was standing at the bar drinking my usual pint of Deuchars and a lady was standing next to me. In conversation, she mentioned Ian Rankin and she asked me if it was true that he really did drink in the Oxford Bar. At the time, I was writing a book and having few engagements, I had grown my hair and had a bit of a beard growing. Even though on the wall behind me there was a picture of me, the lady hadn't recognised me. I told her that it was true that Ian Rankin did indeed drink in the Oxford Bar and usually popped in two or three times a week if he was at home. What followed was an entire conversation about Ian Rankin."
I asked Ian why he didn't tell the lady who he was.
"Well, after several minutes it had gone too far. It would've been embarrassing for the lady if I'd revealed my true identity. Also, there was the possibility that she wouldn't have believed me or thought I was completely mad."

My thanks to Ian for being today's guest on 'A Quick One on The Side'. You can get all the latest new about Ian's books and events via his website http://www.ianrankin.net/
You can also follow Ian on Twitter ( @Beathhigh )

My next guest writer will be Ann Cleeves. Thank you for reading...