Vera - Against the Tide - 8:00 pm Friday, December 26 on ITV3

Brenda Blethyn (Actor) .. DCI Vera Stanhope

Born: February 20, 1946 in Kent

Best Known For: Secrets & Lies.

Early-life: Born Brenda Anne Bottle on February 20, 1946, in Ramsgate, Kent. She's the youngest of nine children of a parlour maid and a chauffeur. Money was tight when she was growing up. After excelling at maths at school, she worked as a secretary and bookkeeper in a bank. But she was always obsessed with films and acting and, at the age of 27, after divorcing her first husband, she gave up her day job and used her savings to fund a drama course at Guildford. She didn't tell her parents, and thought she would go back to her old career if things didn't work out.

Career: Blethyn gained early experience with two small theatre groups before joining the National Theatre in 1975. Her TV debut was in a 1979 episode of Tales of the Unexpected, and a year later she had a lead role in Mike Leigh's small-screen project Gloria. In 1990 she made her first film, The Witches, following that up with A River Runs Through It. Despite roles in Outside Edge and The Buddha of Suburbia, she didn't become a household name until her Oscar-nominated role in Leigh's Secrets & Lies. Since then she's starred in Girls' Night, Saving Grace, Pride & Prejudice, Atonement, London River, and gained another Oscar nomination for Little Voice. She returned to the small screen in 2011 playing the title role in ITV's detective series Vera.

Quote: "I don't have ambition. My expectations are low."

Trivia: Blethyn was awarded an OBE for services to drama in the 2003 New Year Honours List.

Kenny Doughty (Actor) .. DS Aiden Healy

Jon Morrison (Actor) .. DC Kenny Lockhart

Ibinabo Jack (Actor) .. DC Jacqueline Williams

Riley Jones (Actor) .. DC Mark Edwards

Paul Kaye (Actor) .. Dr Malcolm Donahue

Born: December 15, 1964 in Dulwich

Best Known For: His character Dennis Pennis - the spoof reporter who pretended to interview celebrities so he could insult or make fun of them.

Early-life: Paul Kaye was born as Ralph Zang on December 15, 1964, in Dulwich, and raised in Wembley, where he studied theatre design and became obsessed with punk rock. Kaye became an avid fan of Arsenal FC at the age of 14. He used to be an in-house graphic designer for rival team Tottenham Hotspur in the late 1980s, but was given the boot for sticking the odd subliminal cannon into their merchandising catalogues. In real-life he's extremely well-spoken - unlike many of his alter-egos.

Career: Kaye got his TV break working on BBC Two's Sunday Show when he was 24, playing Dennis Pennis, a character he invented during evenings out with his friends, never expecting anything to come of it. Despite being a cult hit, Kaye decided to quit playing him when he found it difficult to get interviews with stars. Away from Pennis, he's appeared in comedy series Perfect World and Citizen Kaye, and hosted game show Liar. He has also starred in It's All Gone Pete Tong, Two Thousand Acres of Sky, Kingdom, Skins, Mongrels, Shameless and Being Human.

Quote: Talking to Pierce Brosnan at a celebrity bash: "When I went to see GoldenEye, I was glued to my seat - otherwise I would have left.''

Trivia: He has starred in a number of commercials for betting website BetVictor.

Paul Bown (Actor) .. Glynn Allen

Samantha Spiro (Actor) .. Belinda Rayford

Born: June 20, 1968 in London

Best Known For: An extensive stage career and playing Barbara Windsor in the TV movie Cor, Blimey!

Early-life: Samantha was born in London on June 20, 1968. She wanted to be an actress from a young age and went on to join the National Youth Theatre and train at the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art. Her first acting role after leaving drama school was in productions of A Midsummer Night's Dream, The Boys from Syracuse and Macbeth at the Open Air Theatre, Regent's Park.

Career: Spiro's breakthrough part was playing Barbara Windsor in Terry Johnson's comedy play Cleo, Camping, Emmanuelle and Dick at the National Theatre. She reprised the role in the TV movie Cor, Blimey! A prolific stage performer, Spiro's theatre credits include Teechers, Jumpers, A Little Night Music, Funny Girl, Chicken Soup with Barley and Guys and Dolls. She won Olivier awards for Merrily We Roll Along and Hello Dolly. On the small screen, Spiro has appeared in MIT: Murder Investigation Team, After You've Gone, Grandma's House, Bad Education, The Wrong Mans, London Spy and Tracey Ullman's Show. She won a British Comedy Award for Grandma's House. Her Radio 4 drama credits include Waiting for Di and Pride and Prejudice.

Quote: "I'm just lucky that I'm getting to play lovely roles, work with great people, and still feel a bit like a mum."

Trivia: Spiro won a Joseph Jefferson Award for Actress in a Supporting Role in a Musical for a production of A Little Night Music in Chicago.

Robert Wilfort (Actor) .. Cal Wallace

Amanda Horlock (Actor) .. Julia Channing

Dharmesh Patel (Actor) .. Nitesh Aya

Patricia Potter (Actor) .. Oonagh Wallace

Ade Ajibade (Actor) .. Leonie Becker

Flynn Allen (Actor) .. Lyle Channing

Jasmine Kerr (Actor) .. Alison Ayad

Theo Solomon (Actor) .. Jason Hewley

Harvey Smith (Actor) .. Frank Channing

Rachel Morris (Actor) .. Carmen Harris

Eilis Konstantina (Actor) .. Amy Watson

Lucia Haynes (Writer)

Will Sinclair (Director)

Will Nicholson (Executive producer)

Kate Bartlett (Executive producer)

Debbie Shewell (Producer)

Vera: Against the Tide

8:00 pm - 10:00 pm, Friday, December 26 on ITV3 (10)

About this Broadcast

Against the Tide
Season 12, Episode 1

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