William Ruane (born 1985) is aScottish actor. He is best known for his roles in the filmsSweet Sixteen (2002) andThe Angels' Share (2012), and in thesoap operaRiver City.

Ruane was born inGlasgow and raised in theCastlemilk area of the city, where he attendedSt Margaret Mary's Secondary School.^[1][2] Whilst still at school and with no previous acting experience, he was selected by directorKen Loach to portray the pivotal character Pinball in the gritty dramaSweet Sixteen set in theInverclyde area (which has a localdialect virtually identical tothat of Glasgow). Pinball, a volatile boy, was the best friend of protagonist Liam, played by fellow newcomerMartin Compston. The film was well received at the2002 Cannes Film Festival, and Ruane received aBritish Independent Film Awards'Most promising newcomer' nomination for his performance. Compston was the winner of the same category and embarked on what would become a successful acting career.^[3]

Ruane (along withSweet Sixteen co-star Annmarie Fulton) was soon able to secure a part in the newBBC Scotland soap operaRiver City; in early 2004 his character Brian—another troubled teen—was written out to "receive medical treatment" following a storyline involving the abduction of Fulton's character Hazel.^[4][5]

Ruane has worked fairly infrequently as an actor since his early success, and has had several jobs in other industries including aDJ,car salesman andtravel agent. In hindsight he admitted that he did not fully appreciate his good fortune at such a young age, and without anydrama school training to refer to, he did not prepare for some auditions as professionally as he could have.^[1][2] Loach remained keen, casting him (alongside Compston) inTickets (2005) and inThe Wind That Shakes the Barley (2006). He also appeared in minor roles on several television series.

In 2012 Ruane's career came full circle when he was cast as Rhino inThe Angels' Share, another production directed by Ken Loach, written byPaul Laverty, produced byRebecca O'Brien and set in the west of Scotland, in which he starred alongside a 'raw talent'—in this casePaul Brannigan—and which had positive feedback at Cannes (the 2012 festival). Another of the main cast members, Gary Maitland (also from Castlemilk), had featured inSweet Sixteen andTickets as well.^[6][7]

Despite the similar level of success to his breakthrough role a decade earlier, Ruane found thatThe Angels' Share did not bring an increase in job offers as he had anticipated.^[1][2]

Having already returned briefly in 2009, Ruane reprised his role as Brian onRiver City in 2016 (his on-screen mother having remained in the series throughout the period).^[1][2]

• William Ruane atIMDb

• Scottish male film actors
• 21st-century Scottish male actors
• Scottish male television actors
• Scottish male soap opera actors
• Living people
• 1985 births
• Male actors from Glasgow

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