Welcome !

 

This is where the tale of an experienced Scottish actor begins. Get to know me and see what I have been doing and what  I can do for you.  I'm glad you're here to be a part of my story.

 

Born and raised in Glasgow, an amazing city which I have learned a lot about over the years. It's also the city where I completed 5 years as a reservist in the military, after which the Police beckoned and I saw 22 years with them before taking early retirement. As such I have a deep experience with Police work which has benefitted me at various times during plays and performances as a Scottish actor.

Since I took an early retirement from the Police, life has become even better. An Honors degree in Literature, a published novelist, trained Life Coach, commissioned photo-shoots and an Acting career have allowed a new lease of life over 50. Since then I have appeared in various productions on short films, feature films, commercials, in theaters , have even won Best Actor in 2020 for the movie " Hunters "

 

See John Walker Gray in an Award winning leading role in this short film. To see the whole movie click the poster or visit YouTube.

 

The film won an Award at the recent " DONT LOOK NOW" Short film festival in Wales in 2022.

News & Updates

Below you see various tiles with pictures, these are my new Blog pages where I'll be adding News & Updates I can share with you. Have a look and if you like the Blog, feel free to share it online with your friends. 

River City welcomes DC Allen

River City, the long running BBC TV Series, set in West-Scotland, has seen me, John Walker, acting in three episodes, Episode 25.45, Episode 25.49 and Episode 25.56. IN a role as DC Allen, a role that was very near to my old Police heart as I was quite familiar with Police work from the 22 years I have worked as a Police Officer in Scotland. So back to the old job actually. :)To know what the series is about, you'll need to watch the River City Series on BBC iPlayer or when on Air on BBC Scotland.

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The Collies Shed @ The Edinburgh Fringe

In August I was back on The Fringe in Edinburgh playing on Stage with " The Collies Shed" a production by Shelley Midler. This production was on Stage in 2023 as well and received numerous 4 and 5 Star reviews.You can follow the production on Instagram : @thecolliesshed 

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All Shook Up 

Cast as Sheriff Earl in the stage production of "All Shook Up" by Joe Dipietro.All Shook Up is based upon original Elvis Presley songs but the story is all new and depicts a farce that will have you sitting on the tip of your chair laughing out loud and singing along with many known Elvis songs.

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Questions for an actor

How are you selected for a feature, a film, production or series ?

Well, I'll try to give you some insight on how one get's onto the silver screen...

First off you are asked by your agent to audition for the part. This can take the form of a “self tape”, where you learn the lines and videotape yourself performing the piece. Sometimes the casting agent / director will want to see you in person for an audition, so then you'll have to do the same thing in from of them. So you'll have to have learned the lines and this time you perform in front of the casting agent / director or even writer..

Having gone through that process you have to go back for a recall...doing the same scene or maybe another scene and then the fun starts...

What happens after an audition ?

When you get selected for the part, you get sent your script for the part you will be performing for and you learn your lines and you'll  have to learn how to perform them (this is my process).

It all takes time...sometimes you get plenty of time and then there are times you get a couple of days to prepare...depends on the production...

What happens on a set ?

On the day of the shoot you are picked up and taken to the set ( larger productions). On the smaller ones, you may need to get there yourself....then it's into costume, get some makeup, and you go to your dressing area (normally a trailer)...

Then you sit and wait....and wait....and wait.......you get the idea...until the director or production assistant comes over and calls you to be ready for your take(s).

Just prior to you arriving on set, you may get "miked up", which means they may put a wireless microphone on you in a hidden place. On other mostly larger productions, there will be a special sound team that often works with microphones on long fishing-pole like units.

After that's done, you do a run through (rehearsal) , when that's approved and okay, you do a rehearsal on camera... and when that's all tested and done - often has to be done several times - then you shoot a “Take”  ...Take One and....ACTION...

How many times are you "On Set" ?

After the rehearsels and first takes, you have a master shot, single shots, close ups, tighter shots... and when you hear the director yell “Cut/Reset” you have to do it all over again ...and again....and again...until the director is happy with the take... When it's all done it's a " Wrap" 

How long does it take to make a movie ?

Basically you can be there for ages....

For example :

1 page of script = 1 minute of film (roughly)
1 min on screen can take 1 hour to shoot (roughly)

...a wee example is that while shooting the film WWZ I was on set for 12 DAYS and the time on screen was about 4 mins long....

The short film “HUNTERS”, which is around 16 mins long, took 5 days to shoot... So it's mainly the script and the director who's vision needs to be created and that determines the length of time on set.