Career: While still presenting, Brydon ventured into comedy, and made ends meet by providing voices for adverts and animations. A small role in Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels inspired him to make a short film of his comic characters; series of Marion & Geoff, A Small Summer Party and The Keith Barret Show followed. Other credits include Director's Commentary, Human Remains, Supernova, A Cock and Bull Story, Little Britain, Annually Retentive and Gavin & Stacey. He's also hosted his own BBC chat show and has chaired the comedy panel show Would I Lie to You? since 2009. In 2010, he starred alongside Steve Coogan in the partially improvised BBC Two sitcom The Trip and has since appeared in its follow-up.

Career: His success as a stand-up was crowned when he won an award at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. He came to the attention of TV bosses after a stint on the radio. Lee was cast in The Sketch show alongside long-term collaborator Tim Vine. After a short-lived stint presenting They Think It's All Over, Mack and Vine began work on Not Going Out. The series revolves around two friends with opposite backgrounds and personalities, much like the two comics themselves. Mack has recently become a regular on comedy panel shows such as Would I Lie to You? and Have I Got News for You. He also has sell-out tours and best-selling DVDs to his name.

Career: After graduating, Mitchell worked an usher at the Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith. He and Webb took a number of shows to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival before being asked to write for Alexander Armstrong and Ben Miller and for surreal comedy series Big Train. In 2001, they made their first sketch show, The Mitchell and Webb Situation, which ran for six episodes on the now-defunct cable channel Play UK. Their next project came in 2003, with the award-winning Channel 4 sitcom Peep Show. They've also worked together on That Mitchell and Webb Sound, That Mitchell and Webb Look and the film Magicians. Solo, Mitchell has appeared on 10 O'Clock Live and numerous panel shows, including Would I Lie to You?, where he's a regular team captain. His autobiography, Back Story: A Memoir, was published in 2012.

Career: During his gap year, Whitehall decided to pursue a career in stand-up comedy. He juggled studying the history of art at Manchester University with gigs. In June 2008, he presented the first week of Big Brother's Big Mouth on E4. He followed this up with appearances on Channel 4's 8 Out of 10 Cats and from then on, became a TV fixture. Whitehall dabbled with acting as a child (he appeared, age nine, in the series Noah's Ark and claims to have auditioned for Harry Potter), and returned to it as an adult with the sitcoms Fresh Meat and Bad Education. He's a regular competitor on Sky1's sports quiz A League of Their Own, appears on various panel game shows, and continues to do stand-up. He also co-hosts a chat show with his dad on BBC Three.

Career: In 1977, Carter joined the National Theatre Company and a year later became a member of the Young Vic Company. In the same year, he went to America to learn juggling, unicycling and tightrope walking. Over the years, Carter has starred in a number of National Theatre productions, including The Mayor of Zalamea, Guys and Dolls and The President of an Empty Room. One of the busiest character actors around, his TV credits are numerous and include A Monocled Mutineer, The Singing Detective, A Very British Coup, Lipstick on Your Collar, Minder, Cracker, Midsomer Murders and Cranford. Equally prolific on the big screen, he has starred in A Private Function (1984), Brassed Off (1996), Shakespeare in Love (1998), 102 Dalmations (2000), Ella Enchanted (2004), The Golden Compass (2007) and My Week with Marilyn (2011). In 2010, he began playing butler Mr Carson in the hugely popular Downton Abbey, a role that has brought him international recognition.

Career: In 1988, he was offered a job by BBC Radio Scotland, presenting No' The Archie Macpherson Show and Bite the Wax. Armando moved to London a year later after applying for a producer's job. He had already earned a reputation as an edgy performer, but On the Hour and Knowing Me, Knowing You brought him into the limelight as a writer and producer. Since then, Armando has written and produced extensively on TV and radio, including The News Quiz, Quote… Unquote, Brass Eye, The Day Today and The Thick of It. He has presented The Saturday Night Armistice and his own self-titled show. A move into cinema with The Thick of It spin-off In the Loop gained recognition at the 2010 Oscars. His US sitcom Veep has been well-received, and he was part of the writing team for big-screen spin-off Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa.