Trivia: Moved from Trinidad to Newcastle, England with his family following his father's death in 1958. Began working at the Flora Robson Playhouse in Newcastle at age 17. Was cast as Philip Smith in The Banana Box in 1973, which was staged in London and Newcastle; he later reprised the role in the television series adaptation, Rising Damp. Starred in the National Theatre's staging of Kwame Kwei-Armah's Statement of Regret at the Cottesloe Theatre in London in 2007. Was paired with professional dancer Lilia Kopylova as a contestant on the sixth season of Strictly Come Dancing, in 2008. Awarded an MBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours of 2008. Made his directorial debut with the staging of Rum and Coco Cola at the West Yorkshire Playhouse in 2010. Directed a stage revival of Rising Damp in 2013 at the Menier Chocolate Factory in 2013.

Trivia: When Imogen Stubbs delighted worldwide audiences with her performance as Viola in a 1996 film production of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, Americans may have wondered who this talented newcomer was, when in fact Stubbs was no neophyte actress but a seasoned veteran well-known to British audiences. Highly regarded for her intelligence, versatility, and formidable acting skill, she had appeared previously, mostly in the U.K., in stage and radio plays, television series, and motion pictures. Among her credits were challenging roles in productions of Shakespeare, Tennessee Williams, George Bernard Shaw, Anton Chekhov, and, for good measure, Monty Python.Stubbs was born on February 20, 1961, in Newcastle-upon-Tyne in Northumberland, England. She and her family lived for a short time in Portsmouth, where her father served as a naval officer, then moved to London to an unusual address -- a barge on the River Thames. Her London environs and their rich theater heritage no doubt fed her acting fancies, and after graduating from Oxford, she received classical training at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.When she was only 21, she launched her film career playing, coincidentally, the part of Imogen in Privileged, then appeared as Mrs. Gilbert in the TV series The Browning Version in 1985 and as Nanou in a film of the same name in 1986. As her talent matured, she took on a demanding schedule, making six more films -- including Erik the Viking -- between 1988 and 1991. While making these six films, she squeezed in stage performances, including a portrayal of Desdemona in the Royal Shakespeare Company's production of Othello under the supervision of acclaimed director Trevor Nunn, whom she later married. It was Nunn who directed her in the film version of Twelfth Night. In that film, she plays a young woman disguised as a man, who in her male garb, unwittingly attracts the attentions of another woman (Helena Bonham Carter). Stubbs' gender-bending role is a formidable test of her acting skill. On the one hand, she has to remain charming and feminine for filmgoers, who know she is really a woman, and bold and masculine for the characters in the play, who believe she is really a man. She passed the test, winning worldwide attention and the plaudits of critics.In fact, the 1990s were golden for Stubbs. Besides her triumph in Twelfth Night, she appeared in other popular films, including the 1995 film production of Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility, in which she played Lucy Steele. She also took to the stage as Stella Kowalski in A Streetcar Named Desire, Yelena in Chekhov's Uncle Vanya, Joan in George Bernard Shaw's St. Joan, and Ellie Dunn in Shaw's Heartbreak House. In addition, she played a detective in a highly popular British television series, Anna Lee. During all this time, Stubbs managed to perform one other important role -- mother. She and Nunn have two children, Ellie and Jesse.

Trivia: Stout, jovial character actor Simon Callow has been enlivening the stage and screen for years, often in roles that highlight his versatility and capacity for a particular brand of good-natured, self-deprecating humor.Born in London on June 13, 1949, Callow began going to the theatre when he was 18 and working at a bookstore with no idea of what to do with his life. He took a particular interest in the Old Vic, which was being run by Laurence Olivier at the time. Deeply impressed with Olivier's talent, Callow wrote to him. To his great surprise, the esteemed actor responded in kind, telling the young man that if he was interested in acting, he should consider taking a job at the Old Vic's box office. Callow did so, and thus made his entrance into the theatre world. He subsequently became a fixture on the London stage, appearing in numerous productions over the years.Callow made his film debut with a substantial supporting role in 1984 in Milos Forman's Amadeus. Two years later, he endeared himself to transatlantic audiences with his portrayal of the bumbling reverend Mr. Beeb in Merchant-Ivory's celebrated adaptation of E.M. Forster's A Room with a View. He would also appear in two more Merchant-Ivory-Forster adaptations, Maurice (1987), in which he had a brief role as the title character's deluded school teacher, and Howards End (1992), which featured him in the small but memorable role of a pompous lecturer on music appreciation.In addition to his numerous collaborations with Merchant-Ivory (which also include Mr. and Mrs. Bridge, 1990, and Jefferson in Paris, 1995), Callow has worked in a number of diverse British and American productions. Perhaps one of his best-loved and most recognizable roles was in the popular Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994). As one of Hugh Grant's motley circle of friends, the ebullient, flamboyant Gareth, Callow injected both poignance and joie de vivre into the proceedings. His character particularly stood out for being in an open, unapologetic relationship with another man (John Hannah), something that at the time had few parallels in American films. The character also highlighted Callow's status as one of Britain's openly gay actors, which also had regrettably few parallels across the Atlantic.Among the other diverse films he appeared in throughout the '90s, Callow particularly stood out in the animated James and the Giant Peach (1996), in which he voiced the wise Grasshopper; the acclaimed Shakespeare in Love (1998), which featured him as the obnoxious, party-pooping Master of Revels; and Rose Troche's omnisexual romantic comedy Bedrooms & Hallways (1998), in which Callow starred as the painfully sincere guru of a men's consciousness-raising group.Keeping busy into the new millenium, Callow noteably appeared among the ensemble cast of Mike Nichols' critically-acclaimed HBO mini-series Angels in America.In addition to working in front of the camera, Callow has spent a fair amount of time behind it as a director. In 1991, he made his feature directorial and screenwriting debut with the film version of Carson McCullers' Ballad of the Sad Cafe. Two years earlier, he had made his Broadway debut as the director of Shirley Valentine. And, apparently averse to having too much free time, Callow is also the author of numerous books on acting and actors. In particular, his biographies of Orson Welles and Charles Laughton have met with great acclaim, further establishing Callow as an actor who is more than just the sum of his parts.

Trivia: Started as a character comedian during the early 2000s at the Edinburgh Fringe with comedy Significant Other Tom Meeten.Appeared in various film and TV roles throughout the 2000s , such as TV comedy program People Like Us, aired on 2001, or It's All Gone Pete Tong, released in 2004.Had his short film Connections screened at Cannes Film Festivals as part of the official Straight 8 selection in 2008.Wrote and directed an horror comedy, Aaaaaaah!, released in 2015, which contains no dialogue, and the cast communicates entirely in animalistic grunts.Has written and directed a large number of shorts films under the pseudonym Steve Aura.

Trivia: British lead actor James Faulkner is best known for his character roles in films like Bridget Jones' Diary. He has also made a name for himself on stage, and has lent his voice to numerous radio productions and audiobooks.

Trivia: Attended a local youth theatre as a child. While at Salford University, she met fellow student Peter Kay, becoming friends and leading to a consistent working relationship. When she received the script for Peter Kay's Car Share, Gibson had removed herself from acting for over a year and was working in a call centre in Chester.