Ken Stott becomes Rebus - Radio Times, January 2006

Features

Ken Stott becomes Rebus - Radio Times, January 2006

As Ken Stott makes his debut as maverick Edinburgh cop John Rebus, Rupert Smith finds out how Ian Rankin's bestselling novels have been adapted for the current television series.

Eric Coulter on… the latest adaptations

"We started with a completely blank sheet of paper. What seemed most important was that we captured the contrast between dark and light that characterises the novels. The Rebus stories are dark and sometimes gruesome, but they're told with a certain panache. We show two sides of Edinburgh - the very pretty city centre, and the grimy underside of the housing estates."

…Ian Rankin

"He's been entirely hands-off. Right from the start he said: 'It's your ball game, good luck to you, but I don't want to take on board your interpretation of my characters.'"

…Ken Stott

"Ken has a very strong screen persona. He can be taciturn, but still express a lot. He can make you laugh one minute, and go right down into the depths the next."

Ken Stott on… refusing the role

"I would walk down the street in Scotland, and people would come up and say, 'Hey, you! Why aren't you playing Rebus?' And I was offered the part - once casually, once quite seriously - but I turned it down on both occasions. I felt I was doing too much cop drama, and that the character of Rebus was too close to the character of Pat Chappel in The Vice."

…playing Rebus

"They asked me again, and the pressure was getting so great I couldn't say no. I still worry about doing too much police drama, but look at Helen Mirren: she's done all those series of Prime Suspect, and nobody thinks she can only play cops."

"We're creating something with a bit of psychological depth. Rebus makes jokes because that's his way of dealing with the nasty stuff."

"The character of Rebus has a huge following in Scotland, particularly in Edinburgh. It's good to be able to say yes, I'm doing it at last, I'm playing the Edinburgh Cop. I resisted it for a long time, but I suppose I'm just bowing to the inevitable."

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Now take a look at our full Rebus guide.

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