Biographie
Born in an unexpected place—on the desk of the British High Commissioner in New Delhi, India—British stage and film actor Ralph Lister embraces every real or imagined world he encounters.
As the son of a British diplomat, Ralph’s childhood was filled with international experiences: kindergarten in Austria, followed by high school years marked by frequent travels to Spain, France, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Kenya, and a four-year stint in Indonesia and nearby islands. Educated at elite private schools in Southern England, where he studied Latin and spoke French and German, Ralph's first exposure to America was through an English-Speaking Union scholarship to a prep school in Connecticut, from which he graduated Cum Laude after two semesters. There, he engaged in all sorts of amusing escapades, memories he fondly recalls with lifelong American friends—he even attended his 25th reunion at Avon Old Farms. These youthful adventures echoed earlier experiences when, at 16, he and a friend hitchhiked from London to Rome and back, living off just one US dollar a day, subsisting on bread and tomatoes, and discovering the pleasures of red wine—now one of Ralph’s greatest delights.
Following the typical university path, Ralph earned a BA Hons in Modern History from Durham University in Northeast England, dedicating himself to acting through summer Shakespeare tours in Ireland and Southwest England. Afterwards, he moved to Spain for nearly three years, immersing himself in English teaching in Madrid and Zaragoza, as well as at summer camps in Andalusia and Murcia. Leaving teaching was the only thing that pulled him away from a deeply fulfilling Spanish life—one in which he still dreams in Castilian.
After brief radio training in London, Ralph landed a DJ position on the pirate radio ship The Voice of Peace, anchored six miles off Tel Aviv, Israel. The station, now sunken, broadcasted Western pop music to eager Israeli listeners and military personnel. He traveled extensively throughout Israel and journeyed down the Nile on a small felucca in Egypt before returning to the US to work at an AOR radio station in Houston, Texas. With his two older brothers living in Asia, Ralph then spent ten years in Hong Kong, primarily in business, traveling across China’s interior and managing a transshipment center at the former US naval base in Subic Bay, Philippines.
After obtaining a US green card in 1997, Ralph finally allowed his creative passions to flourish. He initially moved to New Orleans, working at the historic Le Petit Theatre and performing character roles at the Audubon Zoo, before relocating to Los Angeles to fully immerse himself in the competitive and rewarding world of acting. His diverse stage and on-camera credits worldwide speak volumes. Today, his acclaimed audiobook narrations—Audie-nominated—and Best Actor awards for stage and film (2011 Grand Award and 2014 Eclipse Award) propel him into the captivating realms of his many characters. Whether portraying men, women, young or old, in a variety of accents and personas, Ralph delivers performances rich with authenticity, shaped by the triumphs and trials of his own varied life.
As an audiobook narrator, Ralph has recorded over 130 titles and directed 13 others across numerous genres, both fiction and nonfiction. When not on set, he records from his professional home studio, accompanied by his cat, Gabby-catlet, who serves as his first audience. Outside of acting classes and stage performances, Ralph believes narrating audiobooks is the ideal way to stay sharp—earning well while continually honing his skills as a character communicator by voicing a broad spectrum of personalities daily. (To fellow actors: think of it as paid acting class.)
A US citizen since 2009, Ralph now divides his time between homes in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and Los Angeles, California. And his adventures continue...
