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Tom Banks (EastEnders)
Encyclopedia
Tom Banks is a fictional character
from the BBC
soap opera
EastEnders
, played by Colm Ó Maonlaí
. Introduced in April 2002 as a love interest for Sharon Watts, producers made the decision to axe the character and he was killed-off in November 2002. The character was allegedly popular with female viewers who voted him the 8th sexiest, male character to appear in EastEnders in a 2005 poll.
Tom was a Merchant Marine who had been friends with Mark Fowler and Sharon Watts when they were children. He also knew Mark's cousin, Ian Beale
, but used to bully him, and revealed the nickname he had given him as a child to the rest of Walford, "Squeal Beale".
Tom had left the Marines by 2002 and is first seen at the funeral of Sharon's mother Angie
(Anita Dobson
). Now a firefighter, Tom started dating Sharon, despite interference from her ex-boyfriend, Phil, but his psychotic ex-wife, Sadie, (Isobel Middleton) also interfered in their relationship. Determined to split them up, she uses her daughter, Charlotte, (Hannah Bridges) as an excuse to be part of Tom's life and convince Sharon that they are having an affair. Eventually Sharon realises that Sadie is lying and stands by Tom, despite the rest of Walford turning against them. Sadie becomes deranged and holds Sharon hostage in her flat, threatening to harm her unless she and Tom get back together. She attempts suicide but is convinced by Tom and Sharon to get psychological help.
Things take a turn for the worse when Tom discovers he has a brain tumour but does not tell Sharon. Sharon proposes to him when they swap roles for a day, and realising that they could never have a full, long life together, he ends their relationship, claiming it was all just a 'bit of fun'. Sharon can see that there is something bothering Tom and refuses to give up until he tells her what's wrong. He eventually admits that he is ill but wants Sharon to be his girlfriend, not a nurse. As Tom crumbles, Sharon promises that she will be there for him until the end. They plan to travel around the world but Tom decides he wants to spend his last days in Walford and proposes to Sharon using her father's signet ring.
When Trevor Morgan
(Alex Ferns
) starts a fire at 23 Albert Square, Tom runs in to rescue him and his hostages Little Mo
(Kacey Ainsworth
) and his son, Sean (Oliver Bradley). He gets Mo and Sean out but goes back for Trevor, reaching him just as a petrol can explodes. They both die instantly.
) returning storyline to EastEnders. Despite first appearing in April 2002, the character was given a backstory linking him with several original characters in the series, a childhood acquaintance of Sharon, Mark Fowler
(Todd Carty
) and Ian Beale
(Adam Woodyatt
). Irish actor Colm Ó Maonlaí won the role after the casting director remembered him from a previous audition. Five years earlier he had auditioned for the part of Conor Flaherty
, which was given to Sean Gleeson
. Conor and his daughter Mary
(Melanie Clark Pullen
) were axed in 1999 and Tom Banks was the first character of Irish descent to be given a regular role in the serial since the Flahertys' departure.
Tom was scripted to be a love interest for Sharon. A love triangle storyline featured initially as Tom battled for Sharon's affections with her former lover Phil Mitchell
(Steve McFadden
). In the storyline, Tom was shown to be keeping secrets from Sharon regarding his past marriage, secrets that were unveiled by Phil. Explaining his character's motives, O'Maonlai said, "Tom likes Sharon ever such a lot. I don’t think he expected to have so many feelings for her, but he does. He obviously enjoys the chase, wooing her with flowers, but we’ll have to wait and see to find out if he’s the real thing. I think he is genuine about her. He’s not playing games, even though he does have his secret. After they sleep together, he realises that there’s real feeling there. They’re keen on each other and I think Tom is probably a little nervous about his feelings for her [...] He used to like her at school so is in shock that now they’re grown up, she likes him back - a lot, it seems. Even so, Tom is not the sort of guy who likes to look too far into the future. He’s too busy just having a really good time with Sharon to think about any long-term commitment. They go out together, have a lot of fun and are becoming great friends as well, which is always good. Tom is a little concerned that Phil has been prying into his affairs, and he is nervous that his secret might come out, but he is concentrating on Sharon. And, although Tom is a bit scared of Phil, I think he’s not afraid to stand up to him, if needed."
In July 2002, following the introduction of a new executive producer, Louise Berridge
, it was announced that Tom was being written out of EastEnders. A spokesperson denied that the actor had been fired, commenting, "He was brought in to play out a specific storyline" and that he was due to "go out with a bang". According to The Mirror, EastEnders bosses decided that there was nowhere else to go with the character, that they could not work out how to develop him and that he had fulfilled a specific role. Part of Tom's exit storyline saw the character discovering that he had an inoperable brain tumour. Despite the initial upset this caused to his relationship with Sharon, the couple resolved to stay together and marry. However, in a plot twist, Tom was killed off in an episode airing to celebrate Halloween in October 2002. His death coincided with the exit of another character, Trevor Morgan
(Alex Ferns
). In the episode, Tom rushes in to a house fire to save Trevor who is holding his baby and his ex-wife Little Mo
(Kacey Ainsworth
) hostage, but despite rescuing Mo and the baby, he and Trevor both die in an explosion. O'Maonlai claimed he cried when filming his character dying, partly due to the exhaustion of the filming and stunt work needed for the scenes. He commented, "I found working with fire tough, it was so hot. It wasn't just that I was in the heat, I also had to carry a baby and Little Mo out. I can look after myself but if I've got someone over my shoulder, it's quite freaky. I was well looked after, everybody was there to make sure it went smoothly."
' "sexiest hunk". O' Maonlai was nominated for Best Newcomer in the National TV Awards for the role of Tom.
Ian Hyland, critic for The Mirror, was critical about the way the character was introduced, describing it as "cack-handed". He also mocked the character's apparent flirtations, suggesting that he wore a chest hair wig. The storyline involving Tom's brain tumour was used as an example by The Telegraph
of the phenomena dubbed "telly belly", whereby viewers, noticing symptoms of sickly characters in soaps, visit their own GPs complaining of the same symptoms. A study examinining doctors "concluded that media stories on health issues, such as those featured on the news or in soap operas, had a significant effect on people's perception of their well-being". A researcher commented, "[A viewer] has a headache and gets immersed in a storyline and thinks 'is this a headache or something worse?' In the end Tom [Banks] died in a fire." Dr John Henry, professor of accident medicine at St Mary's Hospital & Imperial College Medical School in London, said, "Anything which empowers patients to take more responsibility for their own well-being is to be applauded".
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
from the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
EastEnders
EastEnders
EastEnders is a British television soap opera, first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 19 February 1985 and continuing to today. EastEnders storylines examine the domestic and professional lives of the people who live and work in the fictional London Borough of Walford in the East End...
, played by Colm Ó Maonlaí
Colm Ó Maonlaí
Colm Ó Maonlaí is an Irish born actor and musician who is best known for his portrayal of Tom Banks in EastEnders, a role which he played from April to November 2002. He has also been featured in other soap operas such as Ros na Rún and Fair City. In 2009, he appeared in a television advertisement...
. Introduced in April 2002 as a love interest for Sharon Watts, producers made the decision to axe the character and he was killed-off in November 2002. The character was allegedly popular with female viewers who voted him the 8th sexiest, male character to appear in EastEnders in a 2005 poll.
Storylines
Ian Beale
Ian Albert Beale is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Adam Woodyatt. He is the longest-serving character and the only remaining original character to have appeared continuously since the first episode on 19 February 1985...
, but used to bully him, and revealed the nickname he had given him as a child to the rest of Walford, "Squeal Beale".
Tom had left the Marines by 2002 and is first seen at the funeral of Sharon's mother Angie
Angie Watts
Angela "Angie" Watts is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Anita Dobson from the first episode of the show until 1988 when the actress decided to quit and the character was written out....
(Anita Dobson
Anita Dobson
Anita Dobson is an English television actress and singer. She gained her highest profile while playing Angie Watts in the BBC soap opera, EastEnders...
). Now a firefighter, Tom started dating Sharon, despite interference from her ex-boyfriend, Phil, but his psychotic ex-wife, Sadie, (Isobel Middleton) also interfered in their relationship. Determined to split them up, she uses her daughter, Charlotte, (Hannah Bridges) as an excuse to be part of Tom's life and convince Sharon that they are having an affair. Eventually Sharon realises that Sadie is lying and stands by Tom, despite the rest of Walford turning against them. Sadie becomes deranged and holds Sharon hostage in her flat, threatening to harm her unless she and Tom get back together. She attempts suicide but is convinced by Tom and Sharon to get psychological help.
Things take a turn for the worse when Tom discovers he has a brain tumour but does not tell Sharon. Sharon proposes to him when they swap roles for a day, and realising that they could never have a full, long life together, he ends their relationship, claiming it was all just a 'bit of fun'. Sharon can see that there is something bothering Tom and refuses to give up until he tells her what's wrong. He eventually admits that he is ill but wants Sharon to be his girlfriend, not a nurse. As Tom crumbles, Sharon promises that she will be there for him until the end. They plan to travel around the world but Tom decides he wants to spend his last days in Walford and proposes to Sharon using her father's signet ring.
When Trevor Morgan
Trevor Morgan (EastEnders)
Trevor Morgan is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Alex Ferns. He first appeared in December 2000, and became a regular cast member the following summer, after moving into Albert Square with his wife Little Mo Slater .-Storylines:Trevor is introduced as the abusive...
(Alex Ferns
Alex Ferns
Alexander "Alex" Ferns is a Scottish actor and television personality, best known for his EastEnders role as Trevor Morgan, "Britain's most-hated soap villain."...
) starts a fire at 23 Albert Square, Tom runs in to rescue him and his hostages Little Mo
Little Mo Mitchell
Maureen "Little Mo" Mitchell is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Kacey Ainsworth.-Storylines:...
(Kacey Ainsworth
Kacey Ainsworth
Kacey Ainsworth is an English actress, best known for playing the long-suffering Little Mo in the BBC soap opera EastEnders.-Life and career:Kacey Ainsworth, is the only soap actress who has won three Soap Actress awards in one single year in 2002...
) and his son, Sean (Oliver Bradley). He gets Mo and Sean out but goes back for Trevor, reaching him just as a petrol can explodes. They both die instantly.
Creation and development
The character was introduced in 2002 by executive producer John Yorke as part of Sharon Watts's (Letitia DeanLetitia Dean
Letitia Dean is an English actress and singer. She is best known for her role as Sharon Watts in the popular BBC soap opera EastEnders, who was one of the serial's original characters. Dean was part of the original cast in 1985 and remained in the series until 1995...
) returning storyline to EastEnders. Despite first appearing in April 2002, the character was given a backstory linking him with several original characters in the series, a childhood acquaintance of Sharon, Mark Fowler
Mark Fowler
Mark Albert Fowler is a fictional character from the popular British BBC soap opera EastEnders. Mark was an original regular character in the series starting February 1985 but became a semi-regular after his original portrayer David Scarboro was written out of the role in April 1985. Scarboro made...
(Todd Carty
Todd Carty
Todd Carty is an Irish actor and director, who has grown up on television screens in a variety of roles. His stage work has varied from pantomime to serious drama, as well as radio plays, voiceovers, commercials, narrations, and films...
) and Ian Beale
Ian Beale
Ian Albert Beale is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Adam Woodyatt. He is the longest-serving character and the only remaining original character to have appeared continuously since the first episode on 19 February 1985...
(Adam Woodyatt
Adam Woodyatt
Adam Brinley Woodyatt is an English actor and media personality, best known for his role as Ian Beale in the long-running BBC soap opera EastEnders...
). Irish actor Colm Ó Maonlaí won the role after the casting director remembered him from a previous audition. Five years earlier he had auditioned for the part of Conor Flaherty
Conor Flaherty
Conor Flaherty is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Seán Gleeson.He first appeared in 1997 when his aunt Pauline Fowler tracked him and his mother Maggie Flaherty down in Ireland after she discovered Maggie was the sister she had never known about...
, which was given to Sean Gleeson
Seán Gleeson
Seán Gleeson is an English actor and director, best known for playing the roles of Conor Flaherty in EastEnders and lawyer Ronnie Woodson in the day time soap opera, Doctors, for which he has also directed a number of episodes...
. Conor and his daughter Mary
Mary Flaherty (EastEnders)
Mary Flaherty is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Melanie Clark Pullen.Mary is the granddaughter of Maggie Flaherty, Pauline Fowler's long-lost sister. Her parents are Conor and Geraldine Flaherty...
(Melanie Clark Pullen
Melanie Clark Pullen
Melanie Clark Pullen is an Irish actress, producer and writer.-Career:Born and raised in Ireland, Clark Pullen studied drama at Trinity College, Dublin. Shortly after graduating, in June 1997, she was cast in her most notable role to date, as Mary Flaherty in the BBC soap opera EastEnders...
) were axed in 1999 and Tom Banks was the first character of Irish descent to be given a regular role in the serial since the Flahertys' departure.
Tom was scripted to be a love interest for Sharon. A love triangle storyline featured initially as Tom battled for Sharon's affections with her former lover Phil Mitchell
Phil Mitchell
Philip James "Phil" Mitchell is a long-running fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Steve McFadden.Phil first arrived in Albert Square on 20 February 1990, and was soon joined by his brother, Grant, sister Sam and mother Peggy...
(Steve McFadden
Steve McFadden
Steve McFadden is an English actor, known for his role as Phil Mitchell in the BBC soap opera EastEnders, which he has played since1990.-Early life:...
). In the storyline, Tom was shown to be keeping secrets from Sharon regarding his past marriage, secrets that were unveiled by Phil. Explaining his character's motives, O'Maonlai said, "Tom likes Sharon ever such a lot. I don’t think he expected to have so many feelings for her, but he does. He obviously enjoys the chase, wooing her with flowers, but we’ll have to wait and see to find out if he’s the real thing. I think he is genuine about her. He’s not playing games, even though he does have his secret. After they sleep together, he realises that there’s real feeling there. They’re keen on each other and I think Tom is probably a little nervous about his feelings for her [...] He used to like her at school so is in shock that now they’re grown up, she likes him back - a lot, it seems. Even so, Tom is not the sort of guy who likes to look too far into the future. He’s too busy just having a really good time with Sharon to think about any long-term commitment. They go out together, have a lot of fun and are becoming great friends as well, which is always good. Tom is a little concerned that Phil has been prying into his affairs, and he is nervous that his secret might come out, but he is concentrating on Sharon. And, although Tom is a bit scared of Phil, I think he’s not afraid to stand up to him, if needed."
In July 2002, following the introduction of a new executive producer, Louise Berridge
Louise Berridge
Louise Berridge is a British writer of historical fiction. Before she became a novelist, she was best known as a television producer and script editor. The most famous post being the executive producer of BBC's EastEnders between 2002 and 2004...
, it was announced that Tom was being written out of EastEnders. A spokesperson denied that the actor had been fired, commenting, "He was brought in to play out a specific storyline" and that he was due to "go out with a bang". According to The Mirror, EastEnders bosses decided that there was nowhere else to go with the character, that they could not work out how to develop him and that he had fulfilled a specific role. Part of Tom's exit storyline saw the character discovering that he had an inoperable brain tumour. Despite the initial upset this caused to his relationship with Sharon, the couple resolved to stay together and marry. However, in a plot twist, Tom was killed off in an episode airing to celebrate Halloween in October 2002. His death coincided with the exit of another character, Trevor Morgan
Trevor Morgan (EastEnders)
Trevor Morgan is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Alex Ferns. He first appeared in December 2000, and became a regular cast member the following summer, after moving into Albert Square with his wife Little Mo Slater .-Storylines:Trevor is introduced as the abusive...
(Alex Ferns
Alex Ferns
Alexander "Alex" Ferns is a Scottish actor and television personality, best known for his EastEnders role as Trevor Morgan, "Britain's most-hated soap villain."...
). In the episode, Tom rushes in to a house fire to save Trevor who is holding his baby and his ex-wife Little Mo
Little Mo Mitchell
Maureen "Little Mo" Mitchell is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Kacey Ainsworth.-Storylines:...
(Kacey Ainsworth
Kacey Ainsworth
Kacey Ainsworth is an English actress, best known for playing the long-suffering Little Mo in the BBC soap opera EastEnders.-Life and career:Kacey Ainsworth, is the only soap actress who has won three Soap Actress awards in one single year in 2002...
) hostage, but despite rescuing Mo and the baby, he and Trevor both die in an explosion. O'Maonlai claimed he cried when filming his character dying, partly due to the exhaustion of the filming and stunt work needed for the scenes. He commented, "I found working with fire tough, it was so hot. It wasn't just that I was in the heat, I also had to carry a baby and Little Mo out. I can look after myself but if I've got someone over my shoulder, it's quite freaky. I was well looked after, everybody was there to make sure it went smoothly."
Reception
The character was reportedly popular with female viewers with Ó Maonlaí receiving "raunchy" fan mail and being a hailed as a "sex symbol". In a magazine that marked EastEnders 20th anniversary in February 2005, Tom Banks came 8th in a poll for EastEndersIan Hyland, critic for The Mirror, was critical about the way the character was introduced, describing it as "cack-handed". He also mocked the character's apparent flirtations, suggesting that he wore a chest hair wig. The storyline involving Tom's brain tumour was used as an example by The Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
of the phenomena dubbed "telly belly", whereby viewers, noticing symptoms of sickly characters in soaps, visit their own GPs complaining of the same symptoms. A study examinining doctors "concluded that media stories on health issues, such as those featured on the news or in soap operas, had a significant effect on people's perception of their well-being". A researcher commented, "[A viewer] has a headache and gets immersed in a storyline and thinks 'is this a headache or something worse?' In the end Tom [Banks] died in a fire." Dr John Henry, professor of accident medicine at St Mary's Hospital & Imperial College Medical School in London, said, "Anything which empowers patients to take more responsibility for their own well-being is to be applauded".