Career: In 1989, Romano won a talent contest run by a local radio station, which landed him a manager. He made his TV debut that year in The Johnnie Walker National Comedy Search. Appearances on The MTV Comedy Half-Hour and The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson helped boost his profile. Guest roles in animated sitcom Dr Katz, Professional Therapist, proved he could act. He won a regular role in NewsRadio in 1996, but turned it down to launch Everybody Loves Raymond. It proved a wise move. The show ran for nine years, was hugely popular and made Romano a major US star. He's since appeared in the movie Welcome to Mooseport and lent his voice to animated film Ice Age and its sequels. He was last seen in the comedy drama Men of a Certain Age and the sitcom Parenthood.

Career: In 1980, Heaton moved to New York and made her Broadway debut in the musical Don't Get God Started, before joining together with fellow acting students to start the theatre company Stage Three. It was in one of their productions that she first caught the eye of a Los Angeles casting director. She subsequently won roles in TV series including thirtysomething, Room for Two, Women of the House and Party of Five, and the movies Memoirs of an Invisible Man and Beethoven. However, her big break came in 1996 when she was cast as Debra in Everybody Loves Raymond - the sitcom ran for nine years and won her two Emmy awards. Since it ended, she's also starred in the comedy Back to You. Away from acting, she has written a memoir and more controversially, has spoken out on behalf of pro-life and anti-euthanasia groups. She is currently starring as Frankie Heck in popular US sitcom The Middle.