Ashley Walters (actor)

This article is about the English-Jamaican actor and rapper. For the rapper who partnered Daddy Freddy, see Asher D (rapper).

Ashley Walters
Walters filming Truckers in 2013
Background information
Birth name	Ashley Anthony Walters [1]
Also known as	Asher D
Born	(1982-06-30) 30 June 1982 (age 42) Peckham, London, England
Genres	UK garage grime hip hop
Occupations	Actor rapper songwriter
Years active	1992–present
Labels	Crescent Moon Media AD82
Children	6

Ashley Anthony Walters (born 30 June 1982), also known by his stage name Asher D, is a British actor and rapper. He first rose to fame as a member of the UK garage group So Solid Crew who hit the top spot on the U.K. charts with their second single "21 Seconds". Walters is best known for portraying drug dealer Dushane in hit British crime drama Top Boy.

Walters has also had an active acting career. After gaining recognition in the early 2000s for his roles in Storm Damage (2000) Bullet Boy (2004), Get Rich or Die Tryin' (2005) and Life and Lyrics (2006), Walters achieved nationwide fame in the 2010s for his lead role as Dushane Hill in the British crime series Top Boy , and as Ronnie Pike Jr. in the Sky One police procedural series Bulletproof , which he co-created with Noel Clarke and Nick Love. He has also appeared in British TV shows such as Grange Hill , The Bill , Holby City , Doctor Who , Silent Witness and the 2015 BBC police programme Cuffs .

Early life

Walters was born in Peckham, south-east London, ^[2] to Jamaican parents. He was raised by his mother, Pamela Case, a local government officer. ^[3] He attended St. George's CE Primary School, Camberwell, from the age of four. He then went on to Pimlico School, now known as Pimlico Academy. He completed his GCSEs, receiving good grades in all 10 subjects. ^[4]

In July 2001, following an argument with a traffic warden, Walters was found to be carrying a loaded Brocock air pistol modified to fire live ammunition. He was arrested and, in 2002, jailed for 18 months, in a young offenders' institute. Having spent the previous nine months in custody, he subsequently served an additional nine months to complete his sentence. ^{[5] [6]}

Music career

Walters joined the group So Solid Crew.^{[ citation needed ]}

After the group split, in 2006 he recorded In Memory of the Street Fighter, featuring the single "Andrea". He released a studio album in 2008 entitled The Appetiser, a 12-track album produced with Laurence Ezra. In early 2012, Walters signed a recording contract with the independent record label SK Records. His single "How You Like Me Now" was released on 29 July 2012, followed up by "Your Love" released on 12 November 2012, featuring vocals from Alesha Dixon. ^[7]

Acting career

Walters is also an actor, appearing under his full name, Ashley Walters. He appeared on television as Omar in The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles and as Andy in Grange Hill , both at the age of 14. ^[8] He appeared in Saul Dibb's 2004 feature film Bullet Boy , where he played Ricky, who had just been released from prison and back into living a normal life, a role for which Walters was named Best Newcomer at the British Independent Film Awards. He also appeared in 2005's Get Rich or Die Tryin' .

In 2006, he played the role of Wolf in the film Stormbreaker , and Danny in Life and Lyrics , for which he has received many plaudits. In 2007, he starred in WΔZ , alongside Selma Blair and Melissa George, and in Sugarhouse . He played Lacey in the BBC Three drama pilot West 10 LDN . He played the character Billy Bond in five episodes of the fourth series of BBC TV drama Hustle . He also appeared in the MTV series Top Buzzer and played the role of Al B in the 2006 production House of 9 , alongside Dennis Hopper.

Walters performed on stage in 2002 at the Royal National Theatre in Roy Williams' Sing Yer Heart Out for the Lads ^[9] and in 2008 at the Royal Court Theatre in Levi David Addai's Oxford Street. ^[10] Another feature film, Tuesday (2008), sees him playing a jewel thief. He appeared in Bola Agbaje's play Off the Endz at the Royal Court Theatre during February and March 2010.

He made appearances in ITV's police drama The Bill and firefighting drama London's Burning . His Grange Hill history and autobiography was referenced by the comedian Stewart Lee on 16 March 2009, on the BBC Two show Stewart Lee's Comedy Vehicle in the episode themed on "Toilet Books". Walters also appeared on BBC TV in 2009's adaptation of Andrea Levy's Small Island and as Jack Holt in the short-lived drama Outcasts in February and March 2011.

For the BBC Learning project "Off By Heart Shakespeare", Walters delivered one of Shakespeare's best known speeches — "But soft, what light through yonder window breaks?" from Romeo and Juliet . ^[11] In October 2011, Walters starred in the Arjun Rose slasher Demons Never Die . From 31 October 2011, he played Dushane in Channel 4's four-part drama Top Boy . In February 2012, he played Chris in the BBC drama Inside Men . In 2013, Walters reprised his role as main character Dushane in the second series of Top Boy.

He managed to get in trouble with the producers on the first day of filming Doctor Who episode "Journey to the Centre of the TARDIS" when he tweeted a picture of himself in his costume in his trailer with the word "space". The picture was immediately removed. ^[12]

In 2017, Walters received the British Urban Film Festival honorary award from Lisa Maffia & Sheila Nortley at the BT Tower in London for 25 years outstanding contribution to film and television. Walters reprised his role in 2019 as Dushane in Top Boy again following its revival on streaming service Netflix, appearing in the third series that year, the fourth series of the drama in 2022 and the fifth in 2023.

Personal life

Walters has four children with his ex-partner. ^[13] He lives with his wife and their two children in Herne Bay, Kent. ^[14]

On 31 March 2014, he was fined £600 after he admitted assaulting a security guard in Aberdeen in September 2013. ^[15] In July 2014, he was fined £1250 for possession of cannabis at Holyhead, Anglesey. ^[16] In May 2016, Walters was fined £1000 after admitting using threatening words and behaviour towards staff at the Hilton Hotel, Islington. ^[17] Walters has said his father's absence while he was growing up contributed to his criminal behaviour. ^[18]

Walters is an avid supporter of Arsenal F.C. ^[19]

Political views

In December 2019, along with 42 other leading cultural figures, Walters signed a letter endorsing the Labour Party under Jeremy Corbyn's leadership in the 2019 general election. The letter stated that "Labour's election manifesto under Jeremy Corbyn's leadership offers a transformative plan that prioritises the needs of people and the planet over private profit and the vested interests of a few." ^{[20] [21]}

Filmography

Key

†	Denotes works that have not yet been released

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1999	Take 2	Bro	Short film
2000	The Elevator	Young man
	Some Voices	Kitchen hand
	Born Romantic	Lee
2004	Bullet Boy	Ricky
2005	House of 9	Al B	Credited as Asher D
	Goal!	Carl Francis
	Get Rich or Die Tryin'	Antoine
2006	Stormbreaker	Wolf
	Cubs	Karl	Short film
	Life and Lyrics	Danny Lewis
2007	WΔZ	Daniel Leone
	Sugarhouse	D
2008	Speed Racer	Prince Kabala
	Tuesday	Billy
2011	Fedz	Cherokee Blame	Short film
	Reparations for the Soul	The Entity
	Anuvahood	Cracks
	Sket	Trey
	Demons Never Die	Bates
2012	St. George's Day	Kootz
2013	Grace and Danger	Felling
	All Stars	Mark
2014	Montana	Ryan
2016	Billionaire Ransom	Danny Dorsey
2016	Demain tout commence	Lowell

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1992	The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones	Omar	Episode: "My First Adventure"
1997	Grange Hill	Andy Phillips	12 episodes
1999	The Murder of Stephen Lawrence	Stuart Lawrence
2000	The Coral Island	Jack
	Storm Damage	Stefan
	Urban Gothic	Leo	Episode: "Dead Meat"
	The Bill	Michael Dexter	Episode: "Search Me"
	Never Never	Lee	2 episodes
	2001	Shockers: Parent's Night	Brian
The Whistle-Blower		Keith Lindo	2 episodes
The Bill		Jess Thomas	Episode: "Lick of Paint"
Dark Realm		Student	Episode: "Castle Keep"
2002	The Hidden City	Sid	21 episodes
2003	Holby City	Roy Woodley	Episode: "One of Our Own"
2004	Top Buzzer	Bugsy	Episode: "Germination"
2005	Last Rights	Max	3 episodes
2007	Hustle	Billy Bond	6 episodes
2008	West 10 LDN	Lacey
2009	Small Island	Michael
2010	Five Days	Jamal Matthews	5 episodes
2011	Bedlam	Mark	Episode: "Committed"
	Outcasts	Jack Holt	8 episodes
2011–2023	Top Boy	Dushane	Main Role, also executive producer (Season 4-5)
2012	Inside Men	Chris	4 episodes
	True Love	Paul	Episode: "Story Four"
	Sinbad	Abdul-Fahim	Episode: "House of Games"
2013	Doctor Who	Gregor Van Baalen	Episode: "Journey to the Centre of the TARDIS"
2013	Truckers	Steven Warley	5 episodes
2014	The Musketeers	Charon	Episode: "The Homecoming"
2014	The Secrets	Ray	Episode: "The Return"
2014	Silent Witness	DI Dale Carter	Episodes: "Fraternity" Parts 1 & 2
2015	Cuffs	PC Ryan Draper	8 episodes
2016	The Aliens	Christophe	6 episodes
2017	Safe House	John Channing	4 episodes
2017	In The Dark	DI Tim Cornish	Episodes: "Time of Death" Parts 1 & 2
2018–2021	Bulletproof	NCA Officer Ronnie Pike	Main Role – 6 episodes Also Co-Creator
TBA	† Adolescence	Luke Bascombe	Post-production

Web

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2018	Shiro's Story	Ty	Part 3 (Short YouTube Series); Cameo

Discography

Studio albums

Date	Title	Chart positions	Credit
		UK
2002	Why Me? Unreleased debut studio album	–	Asher D
14 June 2004	Street Sibling Second studio album	–	Asher D
9 October 2006	In Memory of the Street Fighter Third studio album	–	Asher D
26 February 2009	Ashley Walters Fourth studio album	–	Ashley Walters

Mixtapes

Date	Title	Chart positions	Credit
		UK
June 2006	Cure 4 Cancer First mixtape	–	Asher D
4 February 2007	The Appetiser Second mixtape	–	Asher D
15 December 2011	Forgotten Treasures Vol. 1 Third mixtape	–	Ashley Walters
31 December 2011	Forgotten Treasures Vol. 2 Forth mixtape	–	Ashley Walters
31 December 2011	Forgotten Treasures Vol. 3 Fifth mixtape	–	Ashley Walters
2 January 2012	Forgotten Treasures Vol. 4 Sixth mixtape	– –	Ashley Walters
16 February 2012	Forgotten Treasures: The Complete Legacy Compilation mixtape	–	Ashley Walters

Singles

Date	Title	Chart positions	Album	Credit
		UK
27 May 2002	"Back in the Day"/"Why Me?"	#43	Why Me?	Asher D
14 February 2006	"This is Real"	–	In Memory of the Street Fighter	Asher D
1 August 2006	"Andrea"	–		Asher D
9 July 2007	"Still Here"	–		Asher D
5 November 2007	"Inside Out"	–	Non-album single	Asher D featuring Ghetto
28 July 2008	"Lies"	–		Baby J featuring Ashley Walters
28 October 2008	"M.O. (Pt. 2)"	–	Ashley Walters	Ashley Walters
12 January 2009	"With You"	–		Ashley Walters featuring Mutya Buena
18 May 2009	"Own Two Feet"	–		Ashley Walters featuring Chipmunk
29 July 2012	"How You Like Me Now"	–	TBC	Ashley Walters featuring Lisa Moorish
11 November 2012	"Your Love"	–		Ashley Walters featuring Alesha Dixon

References

1. "INSIDE OUT". ASCAP. American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers. Retrieved 2 May 2023.
2. "Ashley Walters interview: Peckham, 'Top Boy' and Black British representation". Time Out London. 28 October 2020. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
3. "Who is Asher D?". Newsround . BBC. 25 March 2002. Archived from the original on 24 November 2018. Retrieved 27 April 2007.
4. "So Solid middle-class upbringing". 25 March 2002. Retrieved 18 July 2023.
5. "Asher D gets jailed for gun crime". Newsround . BBC. 25 March 2002. Archived from the original on 2 September 2020. Retrieved 26 February 2007.
6. Sean O'Neill (26 March 2002). "So Solid Crew rapper sentenced to 18 months for having loaded gun". The Daily Telegraph . Archived from the original on 25 April 2019. Retrieved 4 April 2018.
7. "Ashley Walters interview by Pete Lewis". Bluesandsoul.com. December 2012. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 29 August 2014.
8. Eames, Tom (5 March 2016). "15 actors you forgot were in Young Indiana Jones". Digital Spy. Retrieved 11 March 2021.
9. Archived 18 September 2009 at the Wayback Machine
10. "The Royal Court Presents Oxford Street". Royalcourttheatre.com. Archived from the original on 10 March 2016. Retrieved 29 August 2014.
11. "Schools – Teachers – Off By Heart Shakespeare: Romeo and Juliet "But soft, what light through yonder window breaks?"". BBC. 21 March 2011. Archived from the original on 11 March 2012. Retrieved 8 July 2011.
12. Lazarus, Susanna (22 October 2011). "Ashley Walters on his Doctor Who role: you'll see more of the Tardis than ever before". Radio Times . Archived from the original on 24 November 2015. Retrieved 21 January 2013.
13. "Ashley Walters on the perils of being Top Boy". Radio Times . 31 October 2011. Archived from the original on 2 November 2011. Retrieved 31 October 2011.
14. "Who is Danielle Walters? The wife of Top Boy star who lives in Herne Bay". Kent Live. 25 March 2022. Retrieved 5 February 2024.
15. "Former So Solid Crew member Ashley Walters fined for Aberdeen assault". BBC News . 31 March 2014. Archived from the original on 30 June 2020. Retrieved 30 June 2020.
16. Davenport, Justin (11 July 2014). "So Solid Crew rapper Asher D caught with cannabis at Welsh airport". Evening Standard . London. Archived from the original on 30 June 2020. Retrieved 30 June 2020.
17. Kirk, Tristan (9 May 2016). "So Solid Crew rapper Ashley Walters fined for abusive tirade at hotel staff". Evening Standard . London. Archived from the original on 30 June 2020. Retrieved 30 June 2020.
18. "Ashley Walters opens up about growing up with an absent father". Evening Express. Press Association. 10 March 2020. Retrieved 16 September 2020.
19. "Arsenal Unveil New Emirates Stadium Artwork". Getty Images . 11 January 2023. Retrieved 5 February 2024. Arsenal fan and actor Ashley Walters at the unveiling of the new Emirates stadium artwork at Candid Arts Gallery on January 11, 2023 in Islington, England.
20. "Vote for hope and a decent future". The Guardian . 3 December 2019. Archived from the original on 3 December 2019. Retrieved 4 December 2019.
21. Proctor, Kate (3 December 2019). "Coogan and Klein lead cultural figures backing Corbyn and Labour". The Guardian . Archived from the original on 3 December 2019. Retrieved 4 December 2019.

External links

• Asher D discography at Discogs
• Asher D at IMDb
• Asher D at Myspace