Career: Blanchett started out on the Sydney stage, in both straight dramas and musicals. She made her TV debut in Police Rescue in 1993. Other brief small-screen roles followed, until two miniseries, Heartland and Bordertown, got her noticed. The movies Oscar and Lucinda, and Thank God He Met Lizzie were well-received, but it was 1998's Elizabeth, for which she received an Academy Award nomination, that made her a star. She reprised the role in sequel Elizabeth: The Golden Age. Other notable projects include The Talented Mr Ripley, The Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, The Aviator (for which she won a Best Supporting Actress Oscar), Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and Robin Hood. In 2013, she won an Oscar for Blue Jasmine in the Best Actress category.

Career: Rush's film debut was a bit part in 1981's Hoodwink and he didn't have a major role on the big screen until he played Sir Andrew Aguecheek in Twelfth Night six years later. He had a small role as a dentist in a 1993 episode of Lovejoy, but his big break came in 1996 with Shine, for which he won an Academy Award. He has received further nominations for Shakespeare in Love (1998), Quills (2000) and The King's Speech (2010). His other film credits include Elizabeth (1998), The Life and Death of Peter Sellers (2004), Munich (2004) and the Pirates of the Caribbean movies. Throughout his film career, Rush has continued to work on the stage.

Career: Owen's professional career began on stage, but he soon switched to TV, making his debut in a 1987 episode of Rockliffe's Babies. Adaptations of Precious Bane and Lorna Doone raised his profile, but it was Chancer that made him a star in the early 1990s. Projects such as Close My Eyes, An Evening with Gary Lineker, The Return of the Native, Sharman and Second Sight sealed his standing as a reliable leading man. Croupier (1998) made Hollywood bigwigs sit up and take notice, and he's enjoyed big-screen success ever since. He received an Oscar nomination for Closer (2004), and also featured in Gosford Park (2001), The Bourne Identity (2002), King Arthur (2004), Sin City (2005), Derailed (2005), Inside Man (2006), Elizabeth: The Golden Age (2007), and Shadow Dancer (2012). In 2014, he began starring in American period medical drama The Knick.

Career: Samantha's first major movie, Under the Skin gained her a Best Actress Award from the Boston Film Critics Society. The attention made director Woody Allen take notice and he cast her as Hattie in Sweet and Lowdown, for which she received an Oscar nomination. Samantha then played a heroin addict in Jesus' Son, gave another superb performance in Morvern Caller, and was subsequently cast by Steven Spielberg for the sci-fi thriller Minority Report opposite Tom Cruise. The 2002 In America role, which saw her as a young Irish mother coping with life in New York City, won her numerous accolades and another Academy-Award nod. She gained more critical acclaim for her portrayal of Moors murderer Myra Hindley in Channel 4's drama Longford. She made her directorial debut in 2009 with Channel 4 drama The Unloved.

Career: Cornish made her film debut in The Monkey's Mask (2000) and went on to star in One Perfect Day (2004), Somersault (2004), Candy (2006), A Good Year (2006) and Elizabeth: The Golden Age (2007). She won a number of awards for her performance in Bright Star (2009). More recently, she has appeared in Limitless (2011), Sucker Punch (2011), Seven Psychopaths (2012), RoboCop (2014) and miniseries Klondike.

Career: Ifans spent 18 months at the National Theatre and has also appeared at Manchester's Royal Exchange theatre. His first TV appearances were in Welsh-language programmes for S4C. In 1995, he made his movie debut in Streetlife. Two years later he appeared on the small screen in The Sin Eater and Trial and Retribution, and starred in the film Twin Town with his brother. Notting Hill made him a star in 1999. Since then he's featured in Kevin and Perry Go Large, Little Nicky, The 51st State, The Shipping News and Vanity Fair. His recent work includes Enduring Love, Hannibal Rising, Elizabeth: The Golden Age, The Boat That Rocked, Greenberg, Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang, and The Amazing Spider-Man.

Career: Hollander read English at Cambridge where fellow student Sam Mendes directed him in several plays (including a controversial staging of Cyrano de Bergerac) before graduating. He spent nine months as a toy demonstrator at Hamley's before theatre work began rolling in. He won the Ian Charles Award for his performance in The Way of the World in 1992, and hasn't looked back since. When encouraged to try films, he appeared in True Blue and Some Mother's Son and while the films got mixed responses, Hollander stood out as their true star. He went on to appear in Martha, Meet Frank, Daniel and Laurence, Gosford Park, The Lost Prince, Pirates of the Caribbean, Pride and Prejudice, In the Loop, and Any Human Heart. He's also returned to the stage on numerous occasions. Hollander co-created the sitcom Rev, in which he also stars.