Mog's Christmas

Adjoa Andoh (Narrator)

Benedict Cumberbatch (Actor) .. Mr Thomas

Born: July 19, 1976 in London

Best Known For: Playing the modern-day Sherlock.

Early-life: Benedict Timothy Carlton Cumberbatch was born on July 19, 1976, in London. His parents are actors Timothy Carlton and Wanda Ventham. He was educated at the public schools Brambletye and Harrow (his grandmother paid his fees); he first started acting at the latter. After spending a year teaching English in a Tibetan monastary, Benedict studied drama at Manchester University, and later continued his studies at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art.

Career: Cumberbatch has divided his professional time between stage, film and TV. He's performed in various London venues, including the Royal Court and National Theatre, and in 2011 he shared the Olivier Award for Best Actor with his Frankenstein co-star Jonny Lee Miller. His first film was 2003's To Kill a King; projects since include Starter for 10, Amazing Grace, The Other Boleyn Girl, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and War Horse. His biggest successes, however, have come on TV in Hawking, The Last Enemy, Parade's End and, of course, Sherlock. He's also worked on The Hobbit movies and Star Trek Into Darkness.

Quote: "Cumberbatch - it sounds like a fart in a bath, doesn't it? What a fluffy old name. I can never say it on a Monday morning. When I became an actor, Mum wasn't keen on me keeping it."

Trivia: In 2014, Time magazine included him in their list of the most influential people in the world.

Claire Foy (Actor) .. Mrs Thomas

Born: April 16, 1984 in Stockport

Best Known For: Little Dorrit and Season of the Witch.

Early-life: Clare was born in Stockport on April 16, 1984, the youngest of three siblings. Her parents divorced when she was eight but she doesn't view this period as a traumatic time. She went on to study drama and screen studies at Liverpool John Moores University and spent a year on an acting course at the Oxford School of Drama.

Career: After filming the pilot of Being Human and guest starring in an episode of Doctors, Foy landed the lead role in BBC period drama Little Dorrit. Her next projects were the TV movie Going Postal and the 2010 BBC remake of Upstairs Downstairs. In 2011, she starred opposite Nicolas Cage in the Hollywood fantasy Season of the Witch. More recently, she has appeared on the small screen in Hacks, White Heat and Crossbones.

Quote: "I'd like to work with directors who really make you work hard."

Trivia: In 2013, she starred alongside James McAvoy in Macbeth at the Trafalgar Studios.

Tacy Kneale (Actor) .. Mog

Zawe Ashton (Actor) .. Mrs Gaynor

Born: July 21, 1984 in London

Best Known For: Not Safe for Work and Fresh Meat.

Early-life: Born Zawedde Ashton in London on July 21, 1984 to a Ugandan mother, Victoria, and an English father, Paul. Her maternal grandfather was Ugandan President and Prime Minister Paulo Muwanga. Zawe went on to attend the Anna Scher Theatre School and was a member of the National Youth Theatre. She gained a degree in acting from the Manchester Metropolitan University School of Theatre. She made her TV debut in 1995 playing the character of a little girl in Game On.

Career: During the early part of Ashton's TV career, she made guest appearances in The Demon Headmaster, In Deep, NCS Manhunt, Holby City and The Bill. She made her film debut in St Trinian's 2: The Legend of Fritton's Gold (2009). More recently, she has had recurring roles in Case Histories, Fresh Meat and Not Safe for Work. Her other film credits include Blitz (2011) and Weekender (2011). In 2006, she was the Young Writer in Residence at the Contact Theatre in Manchester. Her first play, Harm's Way, was shortlisted for the Verity Bargate Award in 2007.

Quote: "[Actors] are from an industry in which people use different kinds of self-medication to get them through."

Trivia: Ashton won the London Poetry Slam Championship in 2000.

Miriam Margolyes (Actor) .. Aunt One

Born: May 18, 1941 in Oxford

Best Known For: Her many film, stage and TV roles.

Early-life: Margolyes was born in Oxford, in 1941, the daughter of Ruth, a real estate investor, and Joseph Margolyes, a physician. She grew up in a Jewish family, a descendant of immigrants from Belarus. She attended the local Oxford High School and later Newnham College, Cambridge. There, she began acting in her 20s, and also appeared in productions of the comedy troup, Cambridge Footlights.

Career: Margolyes first gained recognition for her work as a voice artist. After early work providing vocals on soft-porn films, she performed most of the supporting female characters in the dubbed Japanese action TV series, Monkey. She also worked with the theatre company Gay Sweatshop. Margolyes' first major role in a film was as Elephant Ethel in Stand Up, Virgin Soldiers (1977). She received critical acclaim for her portrayal of Flora Finching in the 1988 movie Little Dorrit. On American TV, she headlined the short-lived 1992 CBS sitcom Frannie's Turn. In 1993 she won a Best Supporting Actress Bafta for her role as Mrs Mingott, the only comic relief in Martin Scorsese's The Age Of Innocence. Since then she has appeared in the Harry Potter films and played small roles in many hit movies and TV shows.

Quote: "Life, if you're fat, is a minefield - you have to pick your way, otherwise you blow up."

Trivia: She became an Australian citizen in January 2013.

Maggie Steed (Actor) .. Aunt Two

Amelie Law (Actor) .. Debbie

Teddy Skelton (Actor) .. Nicky

Charlie Higson (Actor) .. The Jolly Uncle

Gareth Berliner (Actor) .. Chestnut Seller

Judith Kerr (Writer)

Joanna Harrison (Writer)

Robin Shaw (Director)

Matthew Kneale (Executive producer)

Juliet Matthews (Executive producer)

Ann-Janine Murtagh (Executive producer)

12:25 pm - 12:50 pm, Thursday, December 25 on Channel 4 HD (104)

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