Bank of Dave 2023

Dave Fishwick [Rory Kinnear] is a successful businessman in Burnley, a town hit hard by recession in the north of England. In response to the downturn, he begins lending his own money to people who are falling behind on payments, as well as to local families and small businesses that can’t get loans from the banks blamed for the crisis. None of his borrowers default, and some even turn to him to invest money for them—though Dave can’t do that without formal accreditation. Motivated by a sense of community, he decides to create a true local enterprise: a community bank called the Bank of Dave, with profits dedicated to charity and to reuniting the town around a shared, hopeful project.

To navigate the legal requirements, Hugh Stockwell [Hugh Bonneville] is sent from London to Burnley to provide the necessary advice for Dave’s bid to get a banking license from the Financial Regulations Board, the government body that oversees banks. From the start, Hugh is skeptical, especially since the UK hasn’t approved a new bank in over a century, and he plans to discourage Dave from pursuing the plan. Dave, however, expects resistance and even rejection, but he wants the Board to explain its decision publicly; Hugh agrees to prepare the required paperwork. Clarence [Angus Wright], Hugh’s boss, supports the approach but warns that the Board could play dirty in this high-stakes case.

Alexandra Ashforth [Phoebe Dynevor], Dave’s niece and a young physician, is determined to secure funding for a walk‑in clinic in Burnley to help ease the town’s pressure on its healthcare system. She meets Hugh in awkward circumstances and isn’t instantly impressed by him, yet a genuine bond develops as he shares how Burnley feels different from London and how the town’s needs align with his instinct to help.

Hugh submits Dave’s application to the Board, and a few days later Dave is arrested on a charge of illegal money lending for a loan he made in the past—spurred by the funeral expenses of a friend. The widow insists it was a loan, and Dave had used one of his business forms for the transaction. If convicted, he would be utterly disqualified from running a bank. Alexandra learns from a police contact that the arrest was not carried out by local officers but by a London team; the case is tied to a complaint from Sir Charles Denbigh [Hugh Bonneville], one of the country’s most senior bankers. Hugh manages to persuade a local magistrate’s court to dismiss the case on the grounds of malicious prosecution.

With the case behind them, Hugh and Dave return to the Board for a meeting and are stunned when the application is technically accepted. Yet there is a heavy caveat: Dave must deposit £12 million within 90 days, a figure the Board expects him to be unable to raise entirely from local sources, effectively hoping the plan will fail. Dave heads back to Burnley, left to grapple with the daunting fundraising challenge.

Back in Burnley, Hugh faces a tempting offer from a major client that would require exclusive work for them. The catch is that the assignment flowed through Denbigh, seemingly designed to close off future opportunities for the Bank of Dave. He accepts the offer reluctantly, fully aware of the conflict it creates and its potential to undermine the project he came to Burnley to support. Then, at a funeral you sense in the town, Dave shares the hard truth: he cannot conjure the full £12 million. Hugh proposes a bold plan to raise the difference—a benefit concert featuring Def Leppard, a headline idea that galvanizes local support and investors alike. When the concert proceeds fall a little short, Clarence lends £1 million to push the total over the line, and the Bank of Dave finally opens.

Once operational, the Bank of Dave proves a success, revitalizing local businesses and helping to create jobs while also funding a new walk‑in clinic to relieve strain on the town’s health services. The project demonstrates how a locally fueled bank can stimulate growth and stability in a community that has endured years of economic stress. In the end, Hugh tells Alexandra that he intends to move to Burnley to be with her, signaling not just a personal commitment but a professional pledge to stay and contribute to the town he helped revive.