Top 103 Quotes & Sayings by Ashley Walters - Page 2

My mum's been my backbone, my inspiration, and the person who's pushed me in my career.

My dad spent most of my childhood behind bars. He went to jail 17 or 18 times. It was only when he was diagnosed with cancer in 2004 that we started to have a relationship.

Drake is involved heavily, and they're kind of working away to find the right home for 'Top Boy,' whether that be Netflix, whether it be on TV, whether it be Amazon, I don't know.

My son broke his arm. I couldn't do anything, couldn't be there. That's when I knew I was a bad parent. I was doing the same thing my dad had done to me.

I worked in WH Smiths on Sloane Square and my first boss was a woman called June. My shift was half a day on Saturdays, and nine to six on Sundays. I was in and out of the place and only turned up when I wanted to.

Some days it seems I've done as much as I can here and I think I'll go and try my luck in America. But then a call comes from the Globe theatre. They want me for King Lear, playing Edmund.

I think it's difficult for people to understand that when you come from an impoverished background you're very limited in the way you think.

I loved English and I tell kids that without English I wouldn't be able to rap.

I wanted to show that I could take on roles that were a bit softer and more caring.

I have done a lot of short dramas that are three, four or five episodes and so that makes the filming process similar to the independent film process; it is very intimate, and it is a small cast and a small crew and everyone is there with a common goal and want the best for that project.

Acting is something I feel good about doing, I'm lucky enough to love my job as well.

It was tough: I had to kiss a man, and I got a mixed reaction from the black community. But I have to be ready to play any role, or I can't call myself an actor.

A lot of people out there are not content with their life, but I am.

When I was in So Solid Crew, people were always asking if we were associated with the rise in gun crime.

I'm not a fan of social media, to be honest.

When I was young I wanted to be a bus driver, because my grandad was a conductor on the Routemasters.

My father passed away in 2005, and day after, I sat in my flat in Woolwich on my bed, and I feel that I saw him.

I don't want to force anyone to give me a job. I want to be the right person for the part.

There were not a lot of roles for a black man like myself that were different. Then 'Top Boy' came. I read the script and I loved that the characters were human.

The main thing I learned in jail was how much I love my kids, that I never want to be away from them again.

You know, I have got quite a husky, gritty voice which people say - even when I'm talking nicely - does sound a bit rough.

Drake revived 'Top Boy,' if I'm honest with you. You've got to give him a lot of credit.

Whatever I want, the next car or the next house, I stick a picture of it to the back of my door, so I can look at it first thing in the morning and dream it into existence.

I was angry when I was young, but I was never really that violent. I hardly ever fought, mainly because I wasn't very good at it.

This game is full of rejection. As an actor, you are being told 'No' an awful lot of the time. You have to keep getting up and carrying on to get to where you want to go.

A lot of black actors will sit there and go, 'Every role is about being a gangster' - then they get an opportunity to write a script and they write about a gangster. You know... write about a superhero.

After one brandy, I'm already slurring. I'm quite a lightweight.

To be honest, there is going to be no 'Top Boy America.'

I went to a branch of the City of Westminster College in Maida Vale to do drama, sociology and English literature. I stayed for three or four months.

The only TV show that I've been in that my uncle gives me recognition for is 'Doctor Who.'

For me, exercise isn't really about being healthy, it's more about vanity.

My mum put me into the Sylvia Young Theatre School aged four, and I'd go there at weekends.

Growing up without a father has made fatherhood harder for me.

As an actor you pull your socks up and look for the next job.

I come from a place where to go to prison is like a rite of passage. It's something that you gain respect for. I used to watch people come out of prison, older cousins and the like, back in the day, and be in awe of them.

My mother was - and is - a very strong woman; very strict. She was a serious mum; a feared parent.

Using a gun is a coward's way to hurt someone.

When I was released from prison, I didn't want to leave my house for the first three months.

I would love to have a chat with Michael Jackson. For the sole purpose of seeing if he has a deep voice or not. A lot of people say he actually had a deep baritone, but then on TV he always had the high pitched squeaky voice. I would love to spend some time with him.

I'd love to have a farm and some space for my kids.

If you haven't got a gun, you can't shoot anyone. We need to look at how these guns are getting into our communities. It's about replacing the negativity with good stuff. Give kids music studios in the community they can use for free and see how they learn to work together. Football and music unify kids.

You think being a man is being strong, being hard, knowing how to defend yourself. But being a man is about learning how to walk away.

From the outside, people think it's drug-related. But wherever you come from, people are driven by a sense of belonging. What I say to kids all the time is you don't own streets. We don't own the paving stones we are fighting over. Instead of fighting each other, you should be fighting the government to make this a better place to live.