Bank of Dave (film)

The film is based on the real-life experiences of Dave Fishwick. It follows the story of a Burnley self-made millionaire who struggles to set up a community bank to help the town's local businesses to thrive. To do so, he must battle London's elite financial institutions and compete for the first banking licence in more than 150 years. ==Cast==

• Rory Kinnear as Dave Fishwick • Phoebe Dynevor as Alexandra Ashforth • Joel Fry as Hugh Stockwell • Hugh Bonneville as Sir Charles Denbigh • Angus Wright as Clarence • Paul Kaye as Rick Purdey • Jo Hartley as Nicola Fishwick • Cathy Tyson as Maureen Clayton • Naomi Battrick as Henrietta • Florence Hall as Meghan • Drew Cain as Prosecutor • Grant Crookes as Press • Joanne James as Pub Patron • Amanda Marchant as Pub Patron The film includes cameos by band Def Leppard, the-then Burnley FC manager Sean Dyche, and real-life Bank of Dave chief financial officer David Henshaw. ==Production==

Netflix acquired the film rights of Bank of Dave, with Piers Ashworth writing and Chris Foggin directing the film under the production companies Tempo Productions Limited, Future Artists Entertainment, Ingenious Media and Rojovid Films. == Reception ==

Writing in The Guardian, Cath Clarke judged that, "Rory Kinnear is brilliant as Fishwick, who made his fortune selling vans and minibuses but has never forgotten his roots", adding that, "Kinnear gives the character a winning mix of down-to-earth blokiness with a rags-to-riches flamboyance (and a bit of ego to match the flash car)". However, Clarke found that "[t]he rest of the characters feel as if they might have been generated by an algorithm" although she noted that "Hugh Bonneville gives good sneer as a fatcat banker". Overall, she decided, "It’s a film with a decent bit of charm, and it’s hard to argue with the greed-is-bad message. [...] But an artificial taste ruins a fair few scenes". ==True story==

The film gives a disclaimer at the start saying it is "true(ish)". While the basic story and some of the locations are true (scenes were even filmed in Dave Fishwick's own home), much of the film is fictional. • The lawyer (actually two lawyers, Keith Arrowsmith and Chris Moss) were based in Manchester and both married already • There was no senior banker, "Sir Charles Denbigh" in the film, who tipped off the Burnley police to bring a prosecution • The rock band Def Leppard did not perform at a fund-raising concert at Turf Moor. The band flew from the US just to film their cameo in the film. == Sequel ==

A sequel film, Bank of Dave 2: The Loan Ranger, was released on 10 January 2025, with Kinnear reprising his role. == References ==