Born in Edinburgh in 1931, Mr Stewart also wrote episodes of Doctor Who and worked as a producer on shows including The Darling Buds of May, where he is said to have given the final casting vote for Catherine Zeta-Jones to play Pop Larkin’s daughter.
But he is best known for creating Jersey-based detective Jim Bergerac – a divorced loner and recovering alcoholic who cruised the Island in his burgundy 1947 Triumph Roadster while solving crimes.
John Nettles played the lead role and it was an instant success for the BBC, a Sunday night number one which ran for ten years from 1981 to 1991.
Mr Banks died at home on Thursday after suffering from cancer, his son Andy Stewart said.
He is survived by his three sons from his second marriage and a daughter from his first.
