[1] It was also published translated into Dutch for some years in the main financial newspaper of the Netherlands, Het Financieele Dagblad (FD), around the turn of the century.

Alex and Penny married in the strip's early days and had a son called Christopher, who grew up, went to school, had work experience and has now started college.

A common theme is to contrast the old days of the traditional City of London (alcohol-fueled lunches, insider dealing, corporate jollies) with the modern American-influenced financial world (abstemiousness, compliance, corporate-speak).

Peattie and Taylor are reputed to work closely with a variety of London financial contacts to ensure that their strips accurately reflect the recent scandals and rumours which pass around the City.

For instance, in a restaurant, an embarrassed Alex apologises to the maître d' after his dinner guest answers a call on his mobile, which has been frowned upon in the past.

During Christmas times, the strip usually takes on storylines featuring fantasy characters and situations, such as 'A Close Encounter' with aliens (1990), visits to Santa Claus (2006,[3] 2009[4]) or a trip to Narnia (2005[5]).

[6] The complexities of the jokes has meant that the strip has often had to take time off (i.e., not appear for two or more weeks) while the writers come up with new material.

His commitment to social standing requires him to have all of the latest professional gadgets, including a BlackBerry and a 3G mobile phone.

Alex has cheated on Penny a number of times, including a protracted affair with his secretary, Wendy, in 1991, and a one-night stand with a co-worker while travelling on business in 1998.

Fast-tracked in the corporate world due to her gender, her professional success has already begun to undermine Alex's standing and self-worth.

Rupert was once tried and jailed for financial fraud; this did not affect his life style too much: his wife would arrive on visiting day only to be told that her husband was in a meeting.

Alex worked for him during the City slump in around 2002, though he found every excuse from getting away from Hardcastle's northern-based offices to enjoy the pleasures of London and Ascot.

Representing the 'East End Barrow boy' type, Vince wears white socks, talks in cockney rhyming slang ("flute" = suit, "jam jar" = car) and is ignorant of the finer points of culture and etiquette at Glyndebourne and the Royal Opera that Alex and Clive revel in.

Her last act was to send a late night email to all her staff thanking them for showing her "kindness, warmth, respect, personal support, encouragement, loyalty, hospitality and friendship", concluding that all of this was now completely wasted since someone else would be determining their bonuses.

An expatriate investment banker and a frequent character in early years, she would appear in strips in which she and her female colleagues would complain about the treatment of women in the City Shelley is Director of Human Resources at Megabank.

Alex decided that there was no future with Wendy and felt it unwise to continue any longer since her probationary period was due to end and it is hard to sack clerical staff once they become full-time.

Cyrus is Alex's God-fearing American head of department who arrived on the scene in 2006, soon after the Megabank merger and the apparent promotion of Rupert to senior banker status.

In spite of his strongly-held religious values Cyrus is currently (2016) having an adulterous affair with Bridget, wife of his subordinate Clive.

When the dot-com bubble burst, Alex finally got the opportunity to assign such tasks to Robin, who eventually left the bank.

As a result of the credit crunch, Robin's business went bust in early 2009 and he called on Alex for a possible job back at Megabank.

...plus a cast of match sellers, policemen, and all the characters one would expect to find in a cosmopolitan world financial centre.

Alex was turned into a stage play by Peattie and Taylor and was performed at the Arts Theatre, London in October, 2007.

The plot revolved around Alex finding his personal and professional life in crisis when his wife Penny leaves him and a deal involving his perennial client Mr Hardcastle threatens to go sour.

Bathurst took Alex on an international tour, beginning in Melbourne, Australia in September 2008 and concluding in London in December.

Bathurst reprised the role in 2010 in a radio version of Alex, broadcast in ten weekly episodes on Classic FM.

The show did not mention that Alex was a fictional character voiced by an actor and – in the manner of Orson Welles’ The War of the Worlds radio broadcast – many listeners believed that they were listening to a real banker airing his controversial opinions on national radio (the financial crisis of 2007–2008 was in full swing and bankers were persona non grata at the time).