Trivia
- Ray won an Emmy in 2006 for the Best Performance by an Actor for his role in Vincent.
- Ray is a fan of crooners Motown, Sam Cooke, Al Green, Marvin Gaye, Ian Dury, Paul Weller, and Madness.
- Ray is a regular at Ricky English's gym.
- Ray was expelled from the Corona Stage Academy for placing a piece of wood with tacks sticking out under the wheel of his headmistress' car, which blew out her tire.
- Ray's first major role was in the play What A Crazy World at the Theatre Royal Stratford East.
- Ray spent 72 hours in a Leeds jail because he was identified as a criminal on Crimewatch UK.
- Ray appeared in the play Mr Thomas.
- Ray has two children: Lois, born in 1982, and Jaime, born in 1985.
- Ray went the Corona School in Hammersmith which cost AŁ900 a term.
- Ray was called Winnie and Little Sugs by his family and friends.
- Ray joined the Repton Amateur Boxing Club when he was twelve.
- The first time Winstone went to the cinema he saw 101 Dalmations.
- Ray went to school at Edmonton County.
- Ray's mother, Margaret, had a job emptying fruit machines.
- Winstone moved from Plaistow to Enfield when he was seven.
- The Winstone family was originally from Cirencester.
- Ray's father was a greengrocer.
- Ray supports West Ham United Football Club.
- Ray has been married to Elaine Winstone since 1979. They have three children together.
- Ray is 5'10".
Quotes
- Ray Winstone: You were allowed to go, like theater, where you carry a scene on and you become engrossed within the scene. I loved the speed of it. There was no time to sit around. You actually cracked on with a scene and your energy levels were kept up. There was no time to actually sit around and lose your concentration. So, for me, I actually really, really enjoyed this experience.
- Ray Winstone: I had the beauty of not reading the book, which I understand portrays Beowulf as a very one-dimensional kind of character - a hero and a warrior and that was it. I didn't have any of that baggage to bring with me.
- Ray Winstone: If you can get in a ring with 2,000 people watching and be smacked around by another guy, then walking onstage isn't hard.
- Ray: Some of the best jobs I've done have been with directors who are very feminine, or who are women, because they look for other things in a man. They're not interested in the macho shit, you know. And I find that much more interesting because the strengths are already there. Physically I'm quite a big man, with a strong voice, but then you have to find the other stuff.
- Ray: (answering why Robert Zemeckis chose him to play Beowulf) Well, he's obviously a very intelligent man (laughs).
- Ray: I don't mind having a kiss now and then; I'd rather be kissing someone than punching them. But sometimes these are the more interesting parts to play.
- Ray: (commenting on Spielberg) You know, the people that are really good at what they do are the easiest people in the world, and they allow you to bring something to the table. You end up doing what they want you to do, but they make you feel that you're bringing something to the table and it's just a real pleasure to go to work every day.
