Winstone, Ray Andrew (1957- )

English actor. After appearing on television during the 1980s and early 1990s, often as hard, working-class characters, he gained international acclaim for his portrayal of a brutal alcoholic in Gary Oldman's directorial debut, Nil By Mouth (1997). He played a similarly abusive role in Tim Roth's directorial debut, The War Zone (1999), two years later.

He starred opposite Angelica Huston in Agnes Browne (1999) and Ben Kingsley in Sexy Beast (2000). A prolific performer, he starred in the television series Fox (1980), Robin of Sherwood (1984), Ken Loach's Ladybird, Ladybird (1994), and The Ghostbusters of East Finchley (1995). He had supporting roles in several films, such as Cold Mountain (2003) and King Arthur (2004).

He was born in London and moved to Enfield when he was seven. He started boxing at the Repton Amateur Boxing Club at the age of 12, and went on to box during his teens at an international level. He studied drama at the Corona School before landing a role in the BBC Play production of Scum (1977), a drama set in a British borstal for young offenders. Although the production was shelved because of its explicit violence, it led to a role in the feature film Scum two years later and a host of acting roles, including in the Who film Quadrophenia (1979). His production companies include Size Nine, which produced the TV drama She's Gone (2004), and Flicks Productions.