Career: Bowles spent his early years in theatre before making his TV debut in 1959's Last Chronicle of Barsett. He had roles in such classic series as The Avengers, Danger Man and The Prisoner throughout the 1960s. He continued to work steadily in such shows as I, Claudius and Rumpole of the Bailey, but didn't become a star until appearing concurrently in two sitcoms in 1979: the BBC's To the Manor Born and ITV's Only When I Laugh. Since then he's appeared in The Bounder, Lytton's Diary (a series he created), Executive Stress and Perfect Scoundrels. His movies include Blowup and For the Love of Benji. In 2007 he returned along co-star Penelope Keith in a Christmas special of To the Manor Born. He also starred with Keith in 2010 at the Theatre Royal, Haymarket, in The Rivals. In 2011, he had a supporting role in the big-screen romantic comedy Love's Kitchen.

Career: Hodge's first acting job was playing a 37-year-old tart and old-age pensioner in alternate scenes of the same play. She is one of the few actresses to win critical regard, despite spending the bulk of her career in commercial theatre and TV. She played a ballet teacher in acclaimed Quentin Crisp biopic The Naked Civil Servant and also appeared in The Elephant Man. Other memorable TV roles include Rumpole of the Bailey, Jemima Short Investigates, The Life and Loves of a She Devil, and Rich Tea and Sympathy. Film roles include the Harold Pinter drama Betrayal, Bruce Willis flop Sunset and Julie Walters drama Before You Go. She played Margaret Thatcher in controversial drama The Falklands Play and stripped to the basics in the hit West End production of Calendar Girls. Her recent work has included playing Miranda Hart's mother in the comedienne's hit sitcom Miranda.

Career: Havers' first acting job was on the Mrs Dale's Diary radio series. He also spent time with the Prospect Theatre Company. During a lean period he became a wine merchant, but things picked up after an appearance in Upstairs, Downstairs. He's since cropped up in the likes of Chariots of Fire (for which he received a Bafta nomination), Pennies from Heaven, Tales of the Unexpected and A Passage to India. The sitcom Don't Wait Up was a huge hit, and was followed by The Charmer. More recently he's featured in The Sarah Jane Adventures, Brothers and Sisters, Downton Abbey and I'm A Celebrity Get… Me Out of Here! Havers walked out of the latter after a week in the jungle. He played the role of Lewis Archer in Coronation Street in 2009, 2010 and 2012.