Gary Lewis Biography

Fast Facts

• At Gabriele D'Annunzio Theatre in Italy for the Flaiano Awards, he won a Golden Pegasus for Best Actor for his part in "Billy Elliot․"
• For his role in the 2001 film "Billy Elliot," he was nominated for Outstanding Performance by the Cast of a Theatrical Motion Picture
• Was nominated for a London Critics Circle Film Award for British Actor of the Year for "Billy Elliot" in 2001
• His family was active in the 1984-85 miners' strikes in Great Britain, standing in picket lines and helping raise money for the miners
• Made his screen acting debut in the TV series "Screen One" in 1993
• Quote: "Acting wasn't a street lying ahead for me․ People who inspired me were the people I met in my life․"
• Best known for his role as McGloin in "Gangs of New York" and as Jackie Elliot in "Billy Elliot․"
• Quit his day job to get into acting, finding work with the Raindog Theatre Company in Glasgow before landing roles in short films
• More than a decade before he became a professional actor, he performed the role of Scottish socialist John MacLean in a play at the Edinburgh Festival
• During a windy scene in "Orphans," director Peter Mullan gave him no direction and instead told him to "come up with something" because they only had one take