New Tricks - Talking to the Dead - 10:40 pm Tuesday, July 28 on U&Drama +1

Amanda Redman (Actor) .. Sandra Pullman

Born: August 12, 1957 in Brighton

Best Known For: At Home with the Braithwaites and New Tricks.

Early-life: Amanda Jacqueline Redman was born in Brighton on August 12, 1957, the eldest of two children. She poured a saucepan of boiling soup over her torso and left arm when she was 18 months old and needed regular skin grafts until she was five. She studied at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School. She was shattered after her father died suddenly when she was 20.

Career: Redman first attracted attention in 1981 with her steamy film debut in Richard's Things. Roles proved sporadic in that decade, but her career took off in 1991 when she played Roberta in Spender, and Sally in The Men's Room. Bigger roles followed, such as Dr Joanna Stevens in Dangerfield in 1995. She hit the headlines in 1998, first with Close Relations which featured a ménage à trois, then as Diana Dors for glossy drama The Blonde Bombshell. Her small-screen success was consolidated with roles as a teacher in Hope and Glory and as lottery winner Alison in At Home with the Braithwaites - but she has also appeared in the films Sexy Beast (2000) and Mike Bassett: England Manager (2005). She starred in popular BBC drama New Tricks between 2003 and 2013. More recently, she starred in TV movie Tommy Cooper: Not Like That, Like This.

Quote: 'If you're seen as a strong woman, men think you don't need protecting. Yet, underneath it all, I'm quite vulnerable.'

Trivia: Redman received an MBE in 2012.

James Bolam (Actor) .. Jack Halford

Born: June 16, 1935 in Sunderland

Best Known For: Being a Likely Lad.

Early-life: Born James Christopher Bolam on June 16, 1935, in Sunderland. His father died when he was young. The family left the North East when James was 12, and he attended school in Derby. There was no showbiz influence in his family, but Bolam went to the cinema every Saturday and that inspired him to try acting. He briefly worked as a trainee chartered accountant, before winning a place at the Central Drama School in London. He made his professional stage debut at the Royal Court in 1959.

Career: Bolam appeared on stage alongside Laurence Olivier and John Gielgud, then followed it up with films The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner and A Kind of Loving, before being cast as cynical Terry Collier in The Likely Lads in 1964. He agreed to reprise the role in Whatever Happened To The Likely Lads? nine years later. James went on to star in When the Boat Comes In, Only When I Laugh and Alan Plater's Beiderbecke trilogy. He has also appeared in Clockwork Mice, The End of the Affair, Born and Bred, Grandpa in My Pocket, To Kill a King and controversial feature-length drama Shipman, about serial killer doctor Harold Shipman. He starred in New Tricks between 2003 and 2012 and continues to appear on stage.

Quote: 'I'm suddenly popular again. I don't know why.'

Trivia: He was awarded an MBE in 2009.

Dennis Waterman (Actor) .. Gerry Standing

Born: February 24, 1948 in Clapham

Best Known For: The Sweeney, Minder, and New Tricks.

Early-life: Born February 24, 1948, in Clapham, south London, the youngest of nine children, the son of a British Rail ticket collector. As a child he attended the Corona Theatre School and began his professional career with a role in Snowball, a 1960 Children's Film Foundation production. The same year he made Night Train to Inverness, and was asked to join the Royal Shakespeare Company. Playing William in a TV series based on the Just William books made him a star. He then tried to break into Hollywood.

Career: At 16, Waterman returned to Britain and concentrated on stage work until an acclaimed performance in 1968's Up the Junction led to more film roles. Low-budget movies (such as Scars of Dracula) and TV shows (including Colditz) followed until, in 1974, he co-starred with John Thaw in Regan, the pilot episode of iconic series The Sweeney, which became a major TV hit. A 10-year stint in comedy drama Minder followed. Other projects include TV shows On the Up, Stay Lucky, and Circles of Deceit. He's also worked on the stage, most notably in Jeffrey Bernard is Unwell, and My Fair Lady. As Gerry Standing, in BBC drama New Tricks, he has introduced himself to a new generation of fans.

Quote: 'If I am not such a hell-raiser any more, it isn't because I've given up. It's just that my energy levels have fallen. I haven't stopped looking at women. I'm not blind.'

Trivia: He has made several records, including, famously, the theme tunes of several of his TV shows.

Alun Armstrong (Actor) .. Brian Lane

Born: July 17, 1946 in Annfield Plain, near Stanley, Co Durham

Best Known For: New Tricks.

Early-life: Alun Armstrong was born in Annfield Plain, near Stanley, Co Durham, on July 17, 1946. His father was from Cumberland and his mother was from Co Durham. He attended Consett Grammar School before going to Newcastle University. Unhappy in academia, he took a job as a gravedigger, where a colleague managed to get him an interview for a behind-the-scenes job with a theatre company. That in turn led to acting work.

Career: Armstrong's screen debut came in the classic Michael Caine gangster movie Get Carter in 1971. Other early roles included parts in Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads?, Softly, Softly and The Sweeney. His many other TV roles include Austin Donaghue in Our Friends in the North, Detective Chief Inspector Frank Jefferson in In the Red, and George Mole in Adrian Mole: The Cappucino Years, alongside Alison Steadman. Film credits include The French Lieutenant's Woman (1981), Krull (1983), American Friends (1991), Patriot Games (1992) and Braveheart (1995). He has won countless accolades for his classic stage roles. He is currently best known for playing the role of Brian Lane in popular BBC series New Tricks, a part he played for 10 series.

Quote: 'I'm more concerned about losing my marbles than losing parts - especially when it comes to learning lines!'

Trivia: Armstrong originated the role of Thénardier in the London production of Les Misérables and won an Olivier Award for playing the title role in Sweeney Todd.

Robert Bathurst (Actor) .. Martin Lombard

Born: March 22, 1957 in Africa's Gold Coast (now Ghana)

Best Known For: Playing David in Cold Feet.

Early-life: Robert Guy Bathurst was born on February 22, 1957, on Africa's Gold Coast (now Ghana), where his father worked as a management consultant. The family later moved to Ireland, where Robert was enrolled in boarding school, which he has since said he disliked. Despite this, he went on to study law at Cambridge, and joined the university's prestigious Footlights theatre society, appearing in sketches alongside the likes of Emma Thompson and Hugh Laurie. However, he was afraid he wouldn't be able to make it as an actor and initially decided to stick with law, until his love of performing finally won out.

Career: Robert made his professional debut in a Radio 4 series called Injury Time, going on to take a small role in the first episode of Red Dwarf, and also appearing on stage in Noises Off. He made more of a splash with sitcom Joking Apart, which he has described as his favourite role, but it was winning the part of David in comedy drama Cold Feet in 1996 that really made him a star. Since then, he's continued to be in demand on stage and TV, appearing in My Dad's the Prime Minister, Downton Abbey and The Pillars of the Earth, and playing John Le Mesurier in Hattie. He was also reunited with his Cold Feet co-star Hermione Norris for a production of Blithe Spirit. Recently, he has been playing Lord Thomas Davenport in TV horror drama Dracula.

Quote: 'It's astonishing how every day someone will mention to me how they enjoyed Cold Feet.'

Trivia: He auditioned for the part of Rimmer in Red Dwarf.

Nicholas Day (Actor) .. Bevan

Saira Todd (Actor) .. Sarah Stillman

Ken Bones (Actor) .. Bob Mullan

Chike Okonkwo (Actor) .. PC Clarke

Patrick Baladi (Actor) .. Greg Johnson

Christopher Coghill (Actor) .. Christopher Wells

Paula Jennings (Actor) .. Paula

Heather James (Actor) .. Alison

Jodie Kelly (Actor) .. Caitlin

Carolyn Allen (Actor) .. Carole

Natalie Forbes (Actor) .. Jayne

Jan Chappell (Actor) .. Technician

Gina Cronk (Producer)

John East (Director)

Simon Block (Writer)

New Tricks: Talking to the Dead

10:40 pm - 12:00 am, Tuesday, July 28 on U&Drama +1 (60)

About this Broadcast

Talking to the Dead
Season 1, Episode 7

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