Scott & Bailey

Suranne Jones (Actor) .. DC Rachel Bailey

Born: August 27, 1978 in Chadderton, Greater Manchester

Best Known For: Playing Karen McDonald in Coronation Street

Early-life: Born Sarah Anne Jones in Chadderton, Greater Manchester, on August 27, 1978. Her father is an engineer and her mother a secretary; she has an older brother called Gary. At 10, Suranne joined the Oldham Theatre Workshop, where she worked alongside Anna Friel, Lisa Riley and Antony Cotton. After leaving school at 16, she appeared in various stage productions, but by 2000, work dried up and she considered quitting. Landing the role of factory worker Karen in Coronation Street changed her mind.

Career: Jones initially signed a three-month contract with Corrie, but the character proved such a big hit she stayed for four years. Shortly after quitting the soap, she won a part opposite Ray Winstone in Vincent. She went on to star in the TV dramas Strictly Confidential, Dead Clever, Harley Street, Unforgiven, Five Days, Single Father, Doctor Who, The Secret of Crickley Hall and Scott & Bailey. Away from the small screen, she has appeared on stage in A Few Good Men and was seen alongside Joss Stone in the film Snappers, in which she played a stunt woman-turned-B&B owner. She continues to appear on stage, but remains best known for her TV work.

Quote: 'I get nervous with every job because it's the unknown. It's like starting at a new school. I feel unsettled until I've got into my stride.'

Trivia: She devised the format of Scott & Bailey with her friend and former Coronation Street co-star Sally Lindsay, who was meant to take a leading role but was forced to drop out after becoming pregnant with twins. Instead, she plays the smaller part of Jones's sister.

Lesley Sharp (Actor) .. DC Janet Scott

Born: April 03, 1960 in Liverpool

Best Known For: Scott & Bailey

Early-life: Lesley was born in Manchester on April 3, 1960, but raised in Liverpool by her adoptive Scottish parents. She got to know her birth mother in later years, and pieced together her biological father's background while appearing on Who Do You Think You Are? One of her earliest memories involves the many summers she spent in Edinburgh - where it rained. Lesley claims to have watched a lot of TV as a child, but when she announced her intention of becoming an actress, her father wasn't pleased. She spent a year as a civil servant before landing a place at drama school.

Career: Sharp has rarely been out of work since the mid-1980s, but chooses her projects carefully, preferring to select top quality productions rather than jobs for the money. Her first movie was 1986's Rita, Sue and Bob Too. Roles in Road, The Rachel Papers and Close My Eyes followed. Frank Stubbs Promotes was a TV hit in 1993, the same year she worked on Naked, with Mike Leigh, with whom she re-teamed for Vera Drake. Her work in Playing the Field, Clocking Off and Bob and Rose made her one of the small screen's most sought-after actresses. Sharp has also worked extensively in the theatre, but is perhaps best known for playing DC Janet Scott in Scott & Bailey.

Quote: 'I don't believe in ghosts or anything like that, and I'm not religious, but I hate the idea that all this ends.'

Trivia: Her husband Nicholas Gleaves plays the role of DS Andy Roper in Scott and Bailey.

Ben Batt (Actor) .. DC Kevin Lumb

Pooky Quesnel (Actor) .. Sian Cook

Nichola Burley (Actor) .. Hannah Conway

Nicholas Gleaves (Actor) .. DS Andy Roper

Amelia Bullmore (Actor) .. DI Gill Murray

Mete Dursun (Actor) .. Georgios Stelikos

Rupert Graves (Actor) .. Nick Savage

Born: June 30, 1963 in Weston-super-Mare

Best Known For: Appearing in period dramas.

Early-life: Rupert Graves was born June 30, 1963, in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset. The acting bug bit while performing in Victorian musical nights at the town's Birbeck Pier. Unhappy at school, he left at 15 to become a circus clown. He made his TV debut in 1978 in The Return Of The Saint and had small roles in various other productions. He later entertained children at holiday camps as part of Silly Billy Pickles And The Peanut Street Gang before his big break in Merchant Ivory's 1985 movie A Room With A View.

Career: Rejoined Merchant Ivory in 1987 to play a homosexual in Maurice, alongside James Wilby and Hugh Grant. The controversial role gained him fans of both sexes. He has tackled numerous challenging parts since, including a transvestite villain in Open Fire and the lover of a sex-change male in Different For Girls. He won the Best Actor award at the Montreal Film Festival for his part as a naive young man seduced by an older woman in Intimate Relations. Other notable productions include The Madness of King George, Mrs Dalloway, The Blonde Bombshell, Take A Girl Like You and Fortunes Of War. Graves has appeared on Broadway in Closer, and The Elephant Man. Has become a regular in a raft of top-notch detective shows, including Wallander, Lewis, and Sherlock and is very much in-demand.

Quote: 'I'm really pleased with myself. I've not had any training. I knew nothing about acting except that early on I knew I wanted to do it, and I've managed for years to do things without doing them just for the money.'

Trivia: He enjoys playing football.

Shannon Flynn (Actor) .. Elise Scott

Harriet Waters (Actor) .. Taisie Scott

Tony Pitts (Actor) .. Adrian Scott

David Prosho (Actor) .. DC Ian Mitchell

Delroy Brown (Actor) .. DC Lee Broadhurst

Tony Mooney (Actor) .. DC Pete Readyough

Dave Law (Actor) .. Mr Helliwell

Tara Moran (Actor) .. Prosecution counsel

Flo Wilson (Actor) .. Obstetrician

Sally Wainwright (Writer)

Syd Macartney (Director)

Yvonne Francas (Producer)

Nicola Shindler (Executive producer)

11:50 pm - 12:50 am, Wednesday, May 20 on ITV3 (10)

About this Broadcast

Season 1, Episode 3

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