Mamma Mia!

Meryl Streep (Actor) .. Donna Sheridan

Born: June 22, 1949 in New Jersey

Best Known For: Her ability to master any accent.

Early-life: Mary Louise Streep was born in Summit, New Jersey, on June 22, 1949. A popular high school student, she was a cheerleader and homecoming queen. She always wanted to be a performer, but her first ambition was to be an opera star. She didn't consider acting until she began treading the boards at Vassar College. On completing her degree, Streep enrolled at the Yale School of Drama. While waiting for her big break, she worked as a waitress.

Career: Streep started out on the New York stage before making her TV and film debuts in 1977 in Secret Service and Julia respectively. She received her first Oscar nomination a year later for The Deer Hunter and has been nominated a further 17 times - a record - with wins for Kramer vs Kramer, Sophie's Choice and The Iron Lady. Other acclaimed projects include Holocaust, The French Lieutenant's Woman, Silkwood, Out of Africa, A Cry in the Dark, Postcards from the Edge, The Bridges of Madison County, The Hours, Adaptation, The Devil Wears Prada, Angels in America and box-office smash Mamma Mia! Other recent hits include Doubt, It's Complicated and Julie and Julia.

Quote: 'Let's face it, we were all once three-year-olds who stood in the middle of the living room and everybody thought we were so adorable. Only some of us grow up and get paid for it.'

Trivia: Streep donated her wardrobe from The Devil Wears Prada (2006) to a charity auction.

Pierce Brosnan (Actor) .. Sam Carmichael

Born: May 16, 1953 in Drogheda, Ireland

Best Known For: Being James Bond.

Early-life: Pierce Brendan Brosnan was born on May 16, 1953, in Drogheda, Ireland. His parents separated when he was a baby, and he was raised by relatives in Navan (which he considers his hometown) from the age of four while his mother trained as a nurse in England. They were reunited in 1964, settling in Putney, west London, with his mother's second husband. Pierce was bulled at school because of his Irish accent. He later trained as a commercial artist, but switched to acting after becoming involved with a theatre group.

Career: Brosnan's first roles came on stage at York Theatre Royal. He was chosen by Tennessee Williams to star in the West End debut of his play The Red Devil Battery Sign. He followed by his movie debut in Resting Rough in 1979. He made appearances in The Professionals, Hammer House of Horror, The Long Good Friday and Manions of America before moving to Hollywood. He was in the TV show Remington Steele for five years, which prevented him taking over from Roger Moore as 007 in 1986. Low-budget movies followed until Bond came calling again in 1995. His last 007 movie, Die Another Day, was released in 2002. He runs his own production company, Irish DreamTime. Among his best non-Bond movies are The Thomas Crown Affair remake, The Matador, Seraphim Falls, The Ghost, Love is All You Need, The Love Punch, A Long Way Down and Mamma Mia!

Quote: 'To my eye, women get sexier around 35. They know a thing or two, and knowledge is always alluring.'

Trivia: He became an American citizen in 2004, but retains his Irish citizenship.

Julie Walters (Actor) .. Rosie

Born: February 22, 1950 in Smethwick, Birmingham

Best Known For: Her work with Victoria Wood.

Early-life: Born February 22, 1950, in Smethwick, Birmingham, the daughter of an Irish postal worker mother and a decorator father. She has two older brothers. As a child she often performed impromptu shows impersonating Eartha Kitt or Shirley Bassey. She was expelled from school and dreamed of becoming an actress, but her mother persuaded her to take up a 'sensible' career, so she worked as a nurse and in a cigarette factory. She then studied English and Drama at Manchester Polytechnic, where she met Victoria Wood.

Career: Walters' first acting job was at Liverpool's Everyman Theatre, where she caught the eye of playwright Alan Bleasdale - the beginning of many collaborations. She appeared in his first stage success, Scully, in 1974, and in Boys from the Blackstuff in 1980, a year after making her TV debut in Victoria Wood's Talent. She reunited with Wood in the series Wood and Walters, and reprised her stage role in Educating Rita on the big screen, earning an Oscar nomination. Walters has worked steadily ever since. Her most notable projects include Victoria Wood: As Seen on TV, Pat and Margaret, Mamma Mia! and the Harry Potter films. She was awarded an OBE in 1999, gained a second Oscar nomination for Billy Elliot in 2000, and won a Bafta (her seventh) in 2010 for her performance in TV drama Mo.

Quote: 'I've never had Botox or surgery and I wouldn't because I'd feel I was letting myself down. I've embraced not being young.'

Trivia: She was awarded the Bafta Fellowship in 2014.

Colin Firth (Actor) .. Harry Bright

Born: September 10, 1960 in Grayshott, Hampshire

Best Known For: Being Mr Darcy in the 1995 BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice

Early-life: Colin Andrew Firth was born on September 10, 1960 in Hampshire. His parents, Shirley and David, were both lecturers. He has a sister, Kate, and younger brother Jonathan, who both followed him into the acting profession. He spent some of his childhood in America and Nigeria, where his father taught, before the family moved back to the UK. He studied acting in London. One of his early successes was in the 1983 stage adaptation of Another Country, and he subsequently made his big-screen debut in the film version a year later.

Career: Firth worked steadily throughout the 1980s in notable projects such as Falklands drama Tumbledown, A Month in the Country (opposite Kenneth Branagh) and the period offering Valmont. But it was the 1995 costume drama Pride and Prejudice that made him a superstar. Since then, he's notched up roles in several successful films, including The English Patient, Fever Pitch, Shakespeare in Love, The Importance of Being Earnest, Girl with a Pearl Earring, Love Actually, both Bridget Jones movies, both St Trinian's films, The Accidental Husband, Mamma Mia! and A Single Man. It was 2010 movie The King's Speech that really consolidated his reputation. It garnered a number of glittering awards and Firth's Bafta Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role was consolidated by an Academy Award for Best Actor. Films since include Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy and Magic in the Moonlight.

Quote: 'I like playing strange characters. Some people might say it has something to do with a hidden part of myself, but I think it's a lot simpler than that: normal people are just not very interesting.'

Trivia: Firth pulled out of providing the voice of Paddington in the big-screen version of Michael Bond's books. He was replaced by Ben Whishaw.

Stellan Skarsgard (Actor) .. Bill Anderson

Born: June 13, 1951 in Gothenburg

Best Known For: A string of movies.

Early-life: Stellan John Skarsgard was born in Gothenburg on June 13, 1951 to Gudrun and Jan. He made his TV debut as an actor in 1968 when he played the title role in Swedish series Bombi Bitt och jag. He was a member of The Royal Dramatic Theatre in Stockholm between 1972 and 1988, although he continued to work on TV and film projects.

Career: Skarsgard's first American film was Noon Wine (1985). Since then, he has starred in a number of high-profile films, including The Hunt for Red October (1990), Breaking the Waves (1996), Good Will Hunting (1997), Amistad (1997), Ronin (1998), Dogville (2003), Mammia Mia! (2008), The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011) and two Pirates of the Caribbean movies. In recent years, he has played Dr Erik Selvig in the Marvel movies Thor (2011), The Avengers (2012) and Thor: The Dark World (2013).

Quote: 'There is no overacting, only untrue acting.'

Trivia: Skarsgard is an atheist.

Christine Baranski (Actor) .. Tanya

Amanda Seyfried (Actor) .. Sophie Sheridan

Born: December 03, 1985 in Allentown, Pennsylvania

Best Known For: Mamma Mia! and Les Miserables.

Early-life: Amanda Michelle Seyfried was born in Allentown, Pennsylvania, on December 3, 1985, to Ann and Jack. She has an older sister, Jennifer, who is a musician. Amanda began modelling when she was 11 and landed a recurring role in daytime soap opera As the World Turns when she was 15. She also had a recurring role in another daytime soap, All My Children. She deferred a place a university to star in teen hit Mean Girls (2004).

Career: In 2005, Seyfried played the lead role in one of the nine short films that made up Nine Lives. In the same year, she starred in independent film American Gun. She went on to make guest appearances in a number of TV shows, including House, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and CSI, before landing a key role in HBO drama series Big Love. She stayed on the show for four seasons before deciding to concentrate on making films. During her time in Big Love, she enjoyed success on the big screen in the hugely popular Mamma Mia! (2008), Jennifer's Body (2009), Chloe (2009), Dear John (2010), Letters to Juliet (2010) and Red Riding Hood (2011). More recently, she had supporting roles in Les Miserables (2012) and The Big Wedding (2013). She played the lead role in box-office flop Lovelace (2013).

Quote: 'I collect jeans. I don't care how expensive they are.'

Trivia: Seyfried wrote one of the songs on the Dear John soundtrack.

Dominic Cooper (Actor) .. Sky

Born: June 02, 1978 in London

Best Known For: Mamma Mia!

Early-life: Dominic Edward Cooper was born in London on June 2, 1978 to Julie and Brian. He has two older brothers, Nathan and Simon. His sister died in a car accident before he was born. He also has a half-sister and a half-brother. He graduated from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art in 2000. His early acting career involved minor roles in TV and the theatre.

Career: Cooper's breakthrough came in 2004 when he originated the role of Dakin at the National Theatre in Alan Bennett's The History Boys. He went on to play the role on Broadway and in the touring production in Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong. He played the part for a final time in the 2006 big-screen version. Since then, he has starred in The Duchess (2008), Mamma Mia! (2008), Freefall (2009), An Education (2009), Tamara Drewe (2010), The Devil's Double (2011), Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) and its 2014 sequel, My Week with Marilyn (2011) and Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (2011). His TV credits include Down to Earth and Sense and Sensibility.

Quote: 'You never feel like you've done your best work. You always think you could be better.'

Trivia: Cooper was nominated for a 2006 Drama Desk Award for his work on the Broadway production of The History Boys.

Phyllida Lloyd (Director)

Catherine Johnson (Writer)

Judy Craymer (Producer)

Gary Goetzman (Producer)

Benny Anderson (Executive producer)

Tom Hanks (Executive producer)

Born: July 09, 1956 in California

Best Known For: Winning Oscars for Forrest Gump and Philadelphia

Early-life: Born in California in 1956, Tom Hanks grew up in what he calls a 'fractured' family. His parents were pioneers in the development of marriage dissolution law in that state, and Tom moved around a lot, living with a succession of step-families. Eager for a career in acting, he auditioned for a community theater play, was invited by the director of that play to go to Cleveland, and there his acting career started.

Career: After several TV roles, Hanks made the transition to movies and became one of the biggest stars of the past three decades. His breakthrough came in 1984's Splash, and was followed by hit after hit, including Bachelor Party and Dragnet. When he took the lead in Oscar-nominated Big in 1988, he transformed a simple comedy into something much more powerful, before truly proving his acting credentials with an Oscar-winning turn as an Aids-afflicted laweyer in Philadeplhia. He gave terrific turns in romantic comedies like Sleepless in Seattle, then another Oscar followed for Forrest Gump. Many expected him to garner a third for Saving Private Ryan. He has been a successful director of several projects and helped bring iconic TV projects like Band of Brothers to the screen. Recent hits include The Da Vinci Code and its follow-up, and the Toy Story films.

Quote: 'My wife keeps on telling me my worst fault is that I keep things to myself and appear relaxed. But I am really in a room in my own head and not hearing a thing anyone is saying.'

Mark Huffman (Executive producer)

Bjorn Ulvaeus (Executive producer)

Rita Wilson (Executive producer)

07:00 am - 08:50 am, Saturday, May 16 on ITV1 London +1 (35)

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