When people think of the United Kingdom, they think football. When you think football, you think West Ham. When you think West Ham, you undoubtedly think - Ray Winstone.
Ray Winstone, callous bastard and international hardman, is one of the true jewels in the crown of British super-celebs. Born in Hackney, underneath his fathers fruit and vegetable stall, he is no stranger to the limelight. He left school aged 15 with one CSE with the statement 'School? its great if your a nonce or a queer' and his next stop was the bigtime. Repton Amateur Boxing Club was to be responsible for turning this mindless yob into a man capable of slogging faces coherently and with a record of 88 fights and 80 victories he enjoyed a great reputation. Bernard Davies, former opponent said of Winstone "He were a very docile man, he was calm, reserved but when he stepped into that ring he changed, he turned into a minotaur - a man with no soul, no reservations. I saw him beat a man in about 3 seconds, he just kicked his facking face off."
After escaping prison for several counts of GBH Winstone realised he was an actor not a fighter. He left his days of violence behind and began to star in films such as Scum, Tough Love, The Fear, Breaking and Entering and critically acclaimed 'The Bouncer'. A list that is as diverse and prolific as you would come to expect from any avid West Ham fan. Ray was procliamed as 'The British De Niro' by film mogul, and producer of King Arthur, Antoine Fuqua - a statement that has been supported by Shaka Hislop, Paolo Di Canio, Trevor Brooking and Bobby Zamora.
This summer sees Winstone piledrivering his way back onto the big screen with another seminal performance in the film Tracker. Already tipped for greatness the film has been described as "optical phenomenon that will make you goggle and vomit" by Ulrika Johnson. Stan Collymore disagreed (predictable) however, saying that never before has he witnessed such unnecessary violence and mindless thuggery. (The blogonauts think that its a bit rich coming from Stan but nonetheless appreciate his input and services to sport.) Tracker follows a Boer Soldier (Winstone) chasing a Maori accused of murder through the wilderness in what we can only imagine be a in Bear Grylls/Big Brother-esque style of filming. The film has been thoroughly endorsed by Ray Mears who trained Winstone in the art of bushcraft on Dartmoor pre-filming and is nominated for the Breacon Becons Festival in the category of Best bushcraft picture along with 'The wood', 'The Trees', 'The Leaves' and 'Soil'.
With a gloomy forecast for the summer, it is clear that Ray provides the light in what we expect to be a film. Ray de Niro as Fuqua would say, is on the blog and isnt going anywhere...
