Ray Stevenson: actor who became global star after escaping Troubles in Northern Ireland

​Born in Lisburn in 1964, he was the middle son of three of an RAF pilot. The family were to leave Northern Ireland when he was just eight.

In 2005 he told the BBC: “My father was a pilot in the air force and my mother's Irish.

"The Troubles had begun and my father said, 'I've got three young boys and even if they don't pick a side, a side will be picked for them'.

"So he just lifted us out of there and took us to the North-East, which is where I grew up."

In another interview in 2008 with the Belfast Telegraph he said that he got bullied at school in Newcastle because he came from Northern Ireland.

He said: "The IRA was in the news, and because we'd lived in Northern Ireland I was labelled an IRA kid."I had the s**t kicked out of me on a regular basis and even though I can look back on it now and say there was no damage done, it was pretty miserable."

Stevenson began his career on TV in the 1990s before landing action roles in Hollywood films starting in the 2000s.

His first major role came in Antoine Fuqua’s 2004’s movie King Arthur, alongside Clive Owen, Ray Winstone and Keira Knightley.

In 2008, he landed the lead role in Marvel’s Punisher: War Zone, playing the titular character and his alias Frank Castle – becoming the third actor to do so onscreen.

He later appeared in other films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Asgardian warrior Volstagg in Thor, Thor: The Dark World and Thor: Ragnarok.

Stevenson also held various roles in the Star Wars universe, lending his voice to Disney’s Mandalorian series.

At the 2023 Star Wars celebration in London, it was announced he would appear in the upcoming Ahsoka series.

Marvel said: “The incredibly talented actor, and long-time Marvel friend, Ray Stevenson has sadly passed away at the age of 58.”

It said his Volstagg “brought both humour and action to the Thor films” and added: “Marvel extends our condolences to Stevenson’s family, friends, and fans all over the world.”