Midsomer Murders - Book of the Dead - 8:30 pm Tuesday, December 30 on ITV1 London HD

Neil Dudgeon (Actor) .. DCI John Barnaby

Born: January 01, 1961 in Doncaster

Best Known For: Being the new Barnaby in Midsomer Murders.

Early-life: Born in Doncaster in 1961. His dad drove a bread delivery van and his mum was an assistant supermarket manager, although they both also performed on the club circuit. Neil credits his own love of acting to a teacher who forced him to read aloud in an assembly _ it was supposed to be a punishment for misbehaving in class, but Neil found he actually enjoyed it. He went to appear in school plays, before studying drama at Rada.

Career: Neil made his film debut in 1987 with an uncredited role in Prick Up Your Ears, and went on to appear in London's Burning on TV the following year. He's worked pretty steadily since then in a wide range of TV shows, although he admits he's most frequently cast as a cop _ he's starred in Inspector Morse, Out of the Blue, Between the Lines, Messiah and Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Silk Stocking. Last year it was announced that he would be taking on his most high-profile police role to date when he took over from John Nettles as the star of Midsomer Murders. He has also starred alongside Caroline Quentin in the sitcom Life of Riley.

Quote: On joining Midsomer Murders: "My secret dream is that viewers will switch on, watch it all the way through and not notice there's a new bloke in it."

Trivia: He has starred in a number of dramas on Radio 3 and Radio 4.

Nick Hendrix (Actor) .. DS Jamie Winter

Fiona Dolman (Actor) .. Sarah Barnaby

Born: January 01, 1970 in Findhorn, Moray

Best Known For: The Royal Today, Heartbeat and Midsomer Murders.

Early-life: Fiona Jane Dolman was born in Findhorn, Moray, on January 1, 1970 to Rosemary and Gordon. She is the youngest daughter of four children. Her father worked in the RAF and he moved his family to Gibraltar when Fiona was 15. In 1993, she made her TV acting debut in Crime Story.

Career: Roles followed for Dolman on the small screen in Strike Force, A Touch of Frost, The Knock and Ultraviolet. In 1998, she joined the cast of Heartbeat playing Jackie Lambert. She went on to have a recurring role in The Royal Today. In 2011, she began playing Sarah Barnaby alongside Neil Dudgeon in Midsomer Murders.

Quote: On working with the Barnaby's dog on Midsomer Murders: "We have sausages strapped to bags and in pockets so the dog follows you around."

Trivia: At the age of 16 and 17 years, Dolman won awards at the Gibraltar RAF ladies windsurfing championships.

Annette Badland (Actor) .. Fleur Perkins

Born: August 26, 1950 in Birmingham

Best Known For: A string of TV, stage and films roles.

Early-life: Annette was born in Birmingham on August 26, 1950. She trained at the East 15 Acting School in London. In 1975, she made her TV debut as a tap dancing pupil in The Naked Civil Servant. Her next project was the film Jabberwocky (1977).

Career: During a long and prolific acting career, Badland has made appearances in a number of popular TV shows, including Shoestring, The Gentle Touch, Minder, Bergerac, All Creatures Great and Small, Making Out, Love Hurts, Outside Edge, and The Bill. Her film credits include The Grotesque (1995), Little Voice (1998), Beautiful People (1999) and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005). More recently, she has starred in Doctor Who, All the Small Things, You, Me & Them, Man Down, Father Brown, Wizards vs Aliens, and Outlander. In 2014, she joined the cast of EastEnders, playing Babe Smith.

Quote: "The sea has always been a strong force for me - if I want to think about things I tend to go off to the coast."

Trivia: Badland was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild award with her fellow cast members for Little Voice.

Jon Culshaw (Actor) .. Bertram Jewell

Born: June 02, 1968 in Ormskirk, Lancashire

Best Known For: Dead Ringers and The Impressions Show with Culshaw and Stephenson.

Early-life: Jonathan Peter Culshaw was born in Ormskirk, Lancashire, on June 2, 1968. He was educated at St Bede's RC High School, Ormskirk, and St John Rigby RC Sixth Form College, Orrell. His radio career began in hospital radio in his home town. His first job was at Red Rose Radio (now Rock FM) in Preston in 1987, where even then he used to occasionally read the weather in the voice of Frank Bruno. He did voice-over work but was catapulted to prominence with Spitting Image, where he voiced around 40 characters.

Career: After hospital radio, Culshaw served his media apprenticeship as a DJ at several commercial stations, but rose to fame in January 1998 during his time at Capital Radio when his phone call got put through to then-prime minister Tony Blair while impersonating Tory leader of the time William Hague. The two had a lengthy conversation before the penny dropped. Between 2001 and 2002 he had a programme on ITV called Alter Ego where he interviewed male celebrities in their own style of speaking. On ITV he also appeared on 2DTV, then The Impressionable Jon Culshaw, before finding his real niche with the BBC series Dead Ringers. He took part in Celebrity Fame Academy in 2005, where he met Debra Stephenson, with whom he starred in The Impressions Show.

Quote: "By 16 I realised my occupation would be something to do with performance. It was clear I'd be rubbish at a proper job."

Trivia: In 2013, Culshaw appeared in The Five(ish) Doctors Reboot, a comedy homage to Doctor Who.

Oliver Dimsdale (Actor) .. Rev Sebastian Butts

Mina Andala (Actor) .. Ava Butts

Selina Cadell (Actor) .. Venetia Butts

Shaun Dooley (Actor) .. Eli Trask

Best Known For: A string of roles.

Early-life: Shaun was born in Barnsley in 1974 to Ann and Denis and went on to study at the Arden School of Theatre in Manchester. He made his acting debut in the 1997 short film Groove on a Stanley Knife. In the same year, he had a recurring role on Coronation Street and guest appearances followed in Casualty, Dalziel and Pascoe, Peak Practice and the TV movies Warriors and Shackleton.

Career: Between 2001 and 2004, Dooley played the Rev Tom Stuart in EastEnders. Heavily in demand since then, he has made guest appearances in a number of TV shows, including Foyle's War, Holby City, New Tricks, Murphy's Law, Rosemary & Thyme, The Bill, Midsomer Murders, Red Riding, Hustle, Great Expectations, and South Riding. He has had recurring roles in Five Days, Married Single Other, Exile, Sugartown, Misfits, The Game, and Broadchurch. More recently, he has appeared in Ordinary Lies, This is England '90, and Cuffs. His film credits include Eden Lake (2008), The Awakening (2011) and The Woman in Black (2012).

Quote: "I don't believe anybody is inherently evil or anything like that. I think we're all made up of our circumstances and the paths that we've taken."

Trivia: Dooley attends all of Barnsley FC's home games.

Sally Lindsay (Actor) .. Danica Trask

Born: July 08, 1973 in Stockport

Quote: "Being on a soap is the best training you'll ever have."

Trivia: Lindsay performed as Dolly Parton on Celebrity Stars in Their Eyes.

Best Known For: Coronation Street and Mount Pleasant.

Early-life: Sally was born in Stockport on July 8, 1973. She has a younger brother, Christopher, with whom she's very close - she was the best man at his wedding. Her first brush with showbusiness came when, as a member of the St Winifred's Choir, she two weeks at number one thanks to the song Grandma. After school, she studied English language and literature at Hull University.

Career: Lindsay performed stand-up before turning to acting. Her TV debut came in an episode of The Royle Family in 2000. A year later she made a brief appearance alongside close friend Peter Kay in his cult sitcom Phoenix Nights. A few months on, Lindsay played Shelley Unwin for the first time in Coronation Street, a role she played until 2006. Since then, she has starred in Reggie Perrin, Scott & Bailey, Mount Pleasant, Still Open All Hours and Ordinary Lies.

Zak Ford-Williams (Actor) .. Ludo Trask

Amelia Donkor (Actor) .. Jane

Christina Bennington (Actor) .. Billie Bernard

Rhashan Stone (Actor) .. Joel Myhill

Felixe Forde (Actor) .. Scarlett Myhill

Omid Djalili (Actor) .. Othello Khan

Jeff Povey (Writer)

Caroline Graham (Writer)

Gill Wilkinson (Director)

Midsomer Murders: Book of the Dead

8:30 pm - 10:30 pm, Tuesday, December 30 on ITV1 London HD (103)

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Book of the Dead
Season 24, Episode 2

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