Career: While working in a department store in LA, Lansbury met a casting director through her mother. He offered her a role in the 1944 film Gaslight; she was just 18, but it landed her an Oscar nomination. Roles in National Velvet, Blue Hawaii and Bedknobs and Broomsticks followed. She gained further Academy Award nominations for The Picture of Dorian Gray and The Manchurian Candidate. She's also worked extensively on stage, winning a record five Tony Awards. But it was playing Jessica Fletcher in the long-running TV series Murder, She Wrote, that turned her into a household name. More recently, Lansbury has appeared in Nanny McPhee and Mr Popper's Penguins.

Career: On graduating, Orbach moved to New York where he gained regular roles in musicals. Struggled to get film and TV work, but eventually made his cinema debut in 1958's Cop Hater. Since then he's divided his time between stage and screen and has been nominated for a Tony award for roles in Guys and Dolls and the original production of Chicago. Film work includes Dirty Dancing, F/X, Someone to Watch Over Me and Last Exit to Brooklyn. Among his TV roles are The Law and Harry McGraw, Dream West, and Law and Order. He died on December 28, 2004.

Career: Caulfield began gaining roles on stage, making a name for himself by appearing nude. He made his TV debut in series Ryan's Hope in 1980, and looked set to be a major star when he landed the lead in Grease 2. Unfortunately, the film flopped. In 1985, he finally became a household name thanks to Dynasty spin-off The Colbys. Despite working constantly on TV and in films ever since, the productions he's been involved with have been largely disappointing. However, he is a respected stage actor, appearing in acclaimed New York productions of Entertaining Mr Sloane, Dial M for Murder and An Inspector Calls. More recently, he had a year-long run in Casualty and a stint in Emmerdale. He returned to the stage in 2001, with a role in off-Broadway play Cactus Flower.