Actor and former So Solid Crew star Ashley Walters has revealed his secret to a happy home life with his family- and it’s not what you’d expect
Ashley Walters has revealed the strict rule he uses to stay connected to his kids. The 42-year-old Top Boy actor is currently starring in hit Netflix drama Adolescence alongside Stephen Graham.
But off-screen the star, who was also a member of UK garage group So Solid Crew in the early Noughties, is a father of eight. He has three grown-up kids with his ex-partner Natalie Williams, two daughters from another previous relationship and Amaiya-Love, nine, and River, five, with his current wife Danielle Isaie, as well as being step-dad to his partner’s child from another relationship.
And he says the secret to a happy home life is gathering everyone together for a family meal once week and banning devices from the table. He told the Daily Mail newspaper: “Have Sunday lunch with your kids and lock their devices away. That’s what we do.
“Every Sunday my wife puts our children’s devices in a safe and we all have lunch together and talk. Most of us have devices and stuff like that. I genuinely believe as brilliant as our devices are, they have taken something away from us. That human connection. That ability to talk to someone about how you feel.”
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Ashley went on to add that talking in a relaxed family setting also helps everyone cope with their issues. He said: “A problem shared is a problem halved. It’s real. It works. If we can talk about it, it can make us less angry. We talk about a problem and we can be less depressed about it.”
The confession comes as Ashley’s latest acting project Adolescence, about a 13-year-old boy accused of murdering a female schoolmate after becoming influenced by online misogyny, has become a huge hit on Netflix. It also tipped to be nominated at the TV BAFTAS, which take place in May.
The show deals with hard-hitting themes of toxic masculinity and the “manosphere” – and Ashley previously admitted he was amazed by his 15-year-old co-star Owen Cooper. He told GQ magazine: “He’s a magician. I didn’t know how he was doing it. Watching him, I was in awe of how confident he was.
“It’s his first professional job, but it’s also with one-take episodes and with actors that are very experienced and he’s just holding his own with everyone. I’ve got a lot of respect for him, and I believe that he’s going to go on to do great things.
“Owen made me remember what I should be trying to achieve – that childlike innocence that, even as an adult, you should be trying to acquire in every job. That’s what acting is all about: forgetting about your trauma, or how society may have tainted you, or the restrictions and just believing in what you’re doing.”
*Watch Adolescence on Netflix now
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