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... A good man, a patriotic man. He will be missed

—Ian Rider's eulogy

Ian Rider was an agent who worked for the Special Operations division of MI6. He was the brother of John Rider and uncle to Alex Rider, becoming the guardian of the latter when he was orphaned at the age of three months.

Life and career[]

Ian was probably born around 1960. Prior to working for Special Operations, it is said that Ian attended Cambridge University, though the subject(s) he studied are unknown. He was recruited by MI6 in 1988, a year after he became the guardian of his nephew Alex Rider due to the death of his parents. Whilst working for MI6, he claimed he was an overseas finance manager for the Royal & General Bank as a cover. He successfully completed assignments in Iran, Washington, Hong Kong and Cairo, among others, during 1988 and 2001.

Ian is described as being in perfect physical shape, and was thin with fair hair and dark brown eyes. He didn’t smoke, didn’t have any friends, didn’t eat anything fried, and dressed expensively. He was an extremely private man, who was quiet and liked good wine, classical music, and books. It is said that he was proficient in Thai-boxing and karate, and that he spoke three languages fluently (presumably French, Spanish and German, the three that Alex is fluent in). Because of his job, he traveled a lot, and sometimes took Alex with him on his trips.

Biography[]

Alex Rider: Christmas at Gunpoint[]

Four months before the beginning of Stormbreaker, Alex and Ian are spending Christmas at a skiing resort in Gunpoint, Colorado. They book into a hotel, and Ian later challenges Alex to find out the names of two bodyguards accompanying a government employee before the end of the week. After a trip out, Alex returns to see Ian seemingly disturbed at the arrival of a man, Mr Da Silva. After dinner Ian goes outside for some fresh air and Alex soon finds him struggling with Da Silva for the control of a gun. After a brief scuffle, snow falls on top of Da Silva, burying him. In their room, Ian tells Alex not to worry about it, though in the morning finds out that Da Silva had disappeared. After Alex sees the daughter of the government employee being kidnapped, he tries to find Ian, and fails. Later on, Ian saves him from Da Silva, though they don’t talk about what happened afterwards.

Stormbreaker[]

After being sent on a mission to Cornwall to investigate middle-eastern billionaire Herod Sayle, Ian is shot and killed by Yassen Gregorovich, who was working for Sayle. Stormbreaker begins with Alex being woken up at three in the morning to be informed of his death. He later finds Ian’s bullet-ridden car in a breakers yard, and when he is sent to finish Ian’s mission traces his footsteps and finds clues left by Ian along the way. Stormbreaker ends with Alex telling Yassen Gregorovich that he’ll kill him one day to avenge his uncle.

Differences in the TV series[]

Season One[]

In the TV series, Ian Rider dies during the early events of Point Blanc, but is still killed by Yassen Gregorovich to prevent him from discovering any further information. His death leads Alex to become entangled with MI6.

Relationships[]

Alex Rider[]

Ian initially trained Alex to take over from him, in the event of his death. He and Alex spent many an outdoor-adventure outing together, often for weekends and holidays, he enrolled Alex in martial arts classes, and he even openly lied to Alex about the truth of his work. That being said, however, it is clear Ian also tried to be as good a father and uncle as he could possibly be. For example, he never drove Alex anywhere without ensuring he was wearing a seatbelt, reassured Alex when the latter was fearful for his safety, and took action whenever he felt Alex was in danger. In return, despite realizing the truth about his uncle, Alex does not hold him or Smithers with any contempt in contrast to the remainder of MI6, and is clearly very fond of him - even going so far as to swear vengeance against Yassen.

Appearances[]

  • In Graphic Novel version of Stormbreaker.
  • In Film Version of Stormbreaker.

Trivia[]

  • In the film version and graphic novel version of Stormbreaker, Ian actually makes an appearance, seen traveling back to London when he is pursued and killed just minutes after getting off the phone with Alex.
  • He hated the name "uncle'.
Stormbreaker Characters
Main Characters
Alex RiderAlan BluntTulip JonesJack StarbrightHerod SayleYassen Gregorovich
Other Key Characters
Ian RiderSmithersNadia VoleMr. GrinWolfJohn Crawley
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