Tilda Swinton is now a well establish actress and has even won an Oscar for her role in the 2007 flick 'Michael Clayton,' but before finding success like many other budding actresses, she had to think of other ways to earn a living.

Tilda Swinton
Swinton recently revealed she used to earn money by betting on horses

In this year alone, the British-born star has featured in 'The Grand Budapest Hotel,' 'Snowpiercer' and 'Only Lovers Left Alive,' so it was definitely deserved when she was unveiled this year's GQ Woman Of The Year on Tuesday (Dec 2nd).

However, while talking to the magazine, she revealed that work hasn't always been as easy to find, and to maintain a steady wage in-between jobs, Swinton used to make her money from betting on horses.

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"Well, I was a professional gambler. When I lived in London, there were a couple of years when I didn't really earn money doing anything else. I mean, I did other things, like I made work, and I was working with Derek Jarman at the time, but the way I made money was putting money on horses," she told the mag.

"My grandfather had an old gardener called Bert Matheson, and he taught me how to pick winners, and it kind of works!" she added. "It's very strange. I mean, it doesn't always work, of course. It's got something to do with the form, and there's a certain amount of knowledge about particular horses, but it really is not that. It's to do with, um, just looking at the horses in the ring and asking whether they're gonna win or not! Basically, I mean."

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The 54-year-old actress even confessed that after betting on a horse called Devilry in one race, she earned enough cash that "kept us for nearly a year."