Trivia: Wrote plays as a child that he performed with friends. Archbishop Rowan Williams was one of his teachers when he attended the University of Cambridge. Worked with the National Theatre and Royal Shakespeare Company after college. First met his wife, Lulu, when they were in their teens. They drifted apart, but became reacquainted during their 30s. Made his professional acting debut in 1986 as an understudy to Ralph Fiennes in a production of A Midsummer Night's Dream. Supports Merlin, a medical charity, and Scene & Heard, a mentoring program that pairs inner-city children from Somers Town, London, with theatre professionals.

Trivia: Lived in a variety of countries when he was growing up, including Cyprus and Uganda, because his father was a geography teacher in the armed forces. Reckons he received around 66 strokes of the cane while at school. His English teacher encouraged him to focus on drama, cast him in school plays and allowed him to take time out of other lessons to study drama. Met his future comedy partner, Rik Mayall, at university. Was a member of the spoof heavy metal band Bad News who played at the Monsters of Rock festival in 1986. Played Captain Hook in a Peter Pan pantomime during its Christmas run in 2009 at the Marlowe Theatre in Kent. Won the BBC1 cooking series Celebrity Masterchef in 2013, beating Les Dennis and Janet Street-Porter. Was a pallbearer at the funeral of his close friend and fellow comedian Rik Mayall in 2014. Took part in episode 4 of The Greart Sport Relief Bake Off in 2016 and won the title of Star Baker. His children's book Tilly and the Time Machine was published in May 2017. Appeared in EastEnders as Daniel Cook in 2019.

Trivia: A doe-eyed beauty who trained with the Youngblood Theatre Company before making her screen debut in an episode of the U.K. hospital series Casualty, Imogen Poots appeared briefly in Matrix masterminds Andy and Larry Wachowski's V for Vendetta before a substantial role in the horror sequel 28 Weeks Later brought her to the attention of international filmgoers. Cast as the daughter of an original outbreak survivor (played by Robert Carlyle) who is helping to organize the repopulation of London after the English capitol has been declared free of infection, the fresh-faced starlet brought a sense of innocence to her role that might not have been quite as apparent had a better-known actress been given the part.

Trivia: The daughter of an English dancer and an Italian painter, Greta Scacchi was born in Milan, Italy, though she was primarily raised in London. Around the age of 15, Scacchi moved with her family to Australia, where she held a series of odd jobs; among the most unique were cowgirl and Italian interpreter. Two years later, Scacchi moved back to London in hopes of establishing an acting career for herself. Her first step was training at the prestigious Old Vic Theatre, to the displeasure of her father, who, by that point, had become estranged from the family. Before long, Scacchi began appearing in small stage productions and commercials, which were enough to snare the attention of filmmaker Dominik Graf, who cast her in the 1982 German thriller Das Zweite Gesicht. Scacchi learned to speak German strictly for the role.For nearly eight years, Scacchi performed almost exclusively for British stage and television productions, though, particularly after her 1984 portrayal of the title role in the TV-movie version of Camille, she was slowly building a fan following within the U.S. It was her role in a modernized Chekhov play, however, that would earn her attention from Hollywood. Her first American film was Presumed Innocent (1990), in which she portrayed the seductive attorney whose liaison with the married Harrison Ford precipitates her rather nasty murder. Two years later, Scacchi could be found at her seductive best opposite Tim Robbins in director Robert Altman's showbiz comedy The Player; she would star in a similarly themed film 11 years later (Henry Jaglom's Festival in Cannes).Despite her success on the big screen, Scacchi continued her work on television rather than pursuing a full-time film career, partly because it provided more opportunities to perform in classic roles -- in addition to co-starring in productions of Macbeth and The Odyssey, the young actress won an Emmy for her performance alongside Ian McKellen and Alan Rickman in Rasputin (1996). Her film roles were generally met with praise; in Emma (1996), Scacchi was held in very high esteem by both critics and co-star Gwyneth Paltrow, though her most significant role came in the film The Red Violin (1998). The Canadian-Italian production was a surprise success, and Scacchi's portrayal of a novelist embroiled in an affair with a British composer (Jason Flemyng) certainly contributed to film's numerous Genie awards (a highly prestigious Canadian film honor) and its Golden Globe win for Best Foreign Film. In 1999, Scacchi appeared in a unique film that took place entirely inside a women's bathroom (the aptly titled Ladies Room), which also featured Lorraine Bracco and John Malkovich. Scacchi continued her international acting career in 2004, when she starred in both Baltic Storm and Sotto Falso Nome.

Trivia: A struggling stage actress when she was cast in the Kevin Costner epic The Postman (1997), British actress Olivia Williams survived the film's meltdown with her reputation relatively intact. The daughter of lawyers, Williams earned a degree in English at Cambridge University before studying acting for two years with the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School. Her training led to several stage roles, as well as to work with the Royal Shakespeare Company in both Stratford-upon-Avon and London. A four-month tour of Richard III featuring Ian McKellen brought Williams to the United States, and, following a supporting role in the made-for-TV adaptation of Emma (1997), she again found herself stateside to work on The Postman. Fortunately for Williams, she rebounded from The Postman with her role as Miss Cross, the fought-over love interest of a precocious 15-year-old and an embittered millionaire in the acclaimed comedy Rushmore (1998). She could be seen the next year starring opposite Bruce Willis in the enormously successful supernatural thriller The Sixth Sense. She continued to work steadily in films such as Born Romantic, The Man from Elysian Fields, A Knight's Tale, and Peter Pan. She was excellent in An Education as a sympathetic teacher, appeared in short-lived Joss Whedon series Dollhouse, and starred in Roman Polanski's politically-tinged thriller The Ghost Writer. In 2011 she had a main role in the action film Hanna and appeared as Countess Vronsky in Joe Wright's 2012 adaptation of the classic Anna Karenina.

Trivia: An esteemed actress, known both for her portrayals of flinty, dry-witted women and her real-life role as the mother of actresses Emma and Sophie Thompson, Phyllida Law has been acting in her native Britain for over 40 years. Born in Glasgow, Scotland, in 1932 and married to fellow actor Eric Thompson until his death in 1982, Law has spent much of her career working as a character actress both on television and in film. She has done particularly notable work in Douglas McGrath's 1996 adaptation of Jane Austen's Emma, which cast her as the meddlesome Mrs. Bates (and daughter Sophie Thompson as her equally meddlesome daughter Miss Bates); Alan Rickman's acclaimed drama The Winter Guest, in which she and daughter Emma starred as an estranged mother and daughter; and Nigel Cole's Saving Grace (2000), a comedy in which she portrayed the busybody neighbor of a woman (Brenda Blethyn) who has taken to growing pot in her backyard. An accomplished performer on stage, screen, and even radio plays, Law also authored books in which she discussed her experiences caring for her mother, who suffered from dementia, with refreshing, light hearted humor and wit.

Trivia: Radio, film, stage and TV actor. Was brought up near Newcastle-upon-Tyne and often acted in amateur performances at the People's Theatre. Took an active role in student drama at university. Originally trained as a primary school teacher after graduating from university, but opted to be an actor after a year of teaching. Began his professional career in the theatre. Played Vronsky in a BBC Radio 4 production of Anna Karenin in 2002. Revealed he was a descendant of John Lilburne, after being confirmed to portray him in a 2008 production of The Devil's Whore. After performing in Enron in 2009, he reunited with director Rupert Goold in Earthquakes in London in 2010. Is a patron of Scene and Heard, a charity based in London that aims to improve the prospects of children through mentoring and courses in drama skills.

Trivia: Jack Huston grew up in the lap of show business, as the scion of the legendary Huston directing and acting dynasty -- the grandson of maverick American director John Huston and New York actress-model Ricki Soma, the son of Tony Huston, and the nephew of actress Anjelica Huston and actor-director Danny Huston. He thus seemed predestined for a career in showbiz, especially given his dashing good looks. Though largely of American stock, Huston grew up and came of age in England and quickly acquired a English accent; as a result, the press typically classified him as British, and he often referred to the U.K. with great fondness as "home." He first stepped in front of the camera in his mid-twenties, scoring his breakthrough with a turn as poet-photographer-filmmaker Gerard Malanga in the 2005 Edie Sedgwick biopic Factory Girl, followed that up with a prominent role in director Paddy Breathnach's trippy gorefest Shrooms (2007), and signed for a role as Prince Wulfric, a Viking who takes on a group of invading extraterrestrials, in the sci-fi actioner Outlander (2008). Huston played a recurring role on ABC's quickly-canceled Eastwick, an attempt at updating The Witches of Eastwick for primetime television, and had a small role in a flashback scene in 2010's The Twilight Saga: Eclipse. He then joined HBO's Boardwalk Empire in a recurring role as the disfigured, mask-wearing Richard Harrow in season 1 of the show; the character was later upgraded to a series regular for season 2. Huston also kept busy with movies, playing writer Jack Kerouac in Kill Your Darlings (2013).

Trivia: Acted in two different biopics about Ian Fleming, the creator of James Bond. Understudied for a then-unknown Daniel Day Lewis in stage production of Another Country. Performed on the soundtrack for an episode of Agatha Christie's Miss Marple television series. Provided voice-work for the award-winning documentary Letters from Baghdad. Guest starred as a monster-of-the-week on Doctor Who.

Trivia: Decided he wanted to become an actor at age 13. Spotted in a Cambridge production of A Streetcar Named Desire by a talent agent, which led to his being cast in an ITV production of Nicholas Nickleby. Won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Newcomer to the London stage in 2008 for his performance in Cymbeline; he was also nominated for his performance in Othello. Auditioned for the title role in the 2011 film Thor and made it to the final five before being turned down; instead offered (and accepted) the part of Loki.

Trivia: Following graduation, established himself as a stage actor but has since achieved considerable experience in films and television. Member of the National Theatre. Initially intended to pursue a career as a PE teacher, but was unable to achieve the requisite grades. Attended RADA at the same time as Ralph Fiennes, Iain Glen and Jane Horrocks. Dedicated his 2015 BAFTA TV Award win to his late daughter, Maude, who died of sepsis at age 2 in 2011. Played Mr. Twit in the Royal Court production of Roald Dahl's The Twits in 2015. Won the Royal Television Society Award in 2016 for the Best Drama Serial The Lost Honour of Christopher Jefferies. Campaigns for greater awareness of sepsis.