Benidorm

Paul Bazely (Actor) .. Troy

Jake Canuso (Actor) .. Mateo

Born: January 13, 1970 in Near Zurich

Best Known For: Playing barman Mateo in Benidorm.

Early-life: Born Carmine Canuso near Zurich on January 13, 1970 to Italian parents. By the age of 16, he was the youngest member of Zurich's leading contemporary dance company. He performed on the stage and in TV shows in Paris before spending a year in London training at the London Studio Centre. After finishing the course, he trained and performed in New York. He returned to Paris and got to work with Roman Polanski in a piece at the Opera de Bastille.

Career: After settling in London, Canuso danced on tour with a number of artists, including Take That, East 17, Elton John, the Spice Girls and Annie Lennox. He also performed on various TV shows such as the Les Dawson Show, the Royal Variety Performance and Top of the Pops. Canuso eventually made the move into acting and his TV credits include guest appearances in Hustle, Heartbeat, Casualty, Doctors, Shameless, The Hour and Bad Education. He is best known for playing barman Mateo in ITV sitcom Benidorm. On the big screen, he has appeared in Kinky Boots (2005), Journal of a Contract Killer (2008), City Rats (2009) and The Dark Knight Rises (2012).

Quote: On his Benidorm character: 'I don't think there are many similarities between me and Mateo actually. We are quite far apart as people.'

Trivia: He speaks six languages.

Janine Duvitski (Actor) .. Jacqueline

Best Known For: Waiting for God, One Foot in the Grave and Benidorm.

Early-life: Born Christine Janine Drzewicki in Morecambe in June 1952 to an English mother and a Polish father. She moved to London to train as an actor at the East 15 Acting School. Her first TV credit was an episode of Z Cars in 1972. After finishing her training and despite being in her early 20s, she landed the role of a 13-year-old girl in the 1975 BBC play Diane. Her big break came in 1977 when Mike Leigh cast her in his stage play Abigail's Party. She went on to play the same role in an abridged TV version for the BBC.

Career: Duvitski has worked steadily on TV in a number of shows, popping up in the likes of Citizen Smith, Minder, Cowboys, The New Statesman, Midsomer Murders, Foyle's War and Little Dorrit. Her face is better known to audiences as prudish assistant Jane in Waiting for God, Victor and Margaret's neighbour Pippa in One Foot in the Grave and swinger Jacqueline in Benidorm. She has also appeared on the big screen in Dracula (1979), Breaking Glass (1980) and The Madness of King George (1994).

Quote: 'People really do seem to believe I'm a swinger!'

Trivia: Duvitski enjoys reading when she's not filming.

Tim Healy (Actor) .. Les/Lesley

Born: January 29, 1952 in Newcastle upon Tyne

Best Known For: Auf Wiedersehen, Pet.

Early-life: Timothy Malcolm Healy was born on January 29, 1952, in Newcastle upon Tyne. Before becoming an actor, he served an apprenticeship as a welder at the Caterpillar Tractor Co and spent three years as a paratrooper in the British Army. He started his showbusiness career in 1972 as a stand-up comedian.

Career: After a number of minor roles on TV, his big break came in 1983 when he landed the part of Dennis Patterson in Auf Wiedersehen, Pet. The hugely popular comedy drama returned for a second series in 1986 and further new episodes were broadcast in 2002 and 2004. Healy has been an ever-present face on British TV since the success of Auf Wiedersehen, Pet and he has appeared in a number of shows, including Boys from the Bush, Common As Muck, The Grand, Catterick and Coronation Street. Healy has also had an accomplished stage career. He was a founder member of Live Theatre in Newcastle in the 1970s and he has played everything from Dame Trott in Jack and the Beanstalk to Sir Toby Belch in William Shakespeare's Twelfth Night. He was nominated for an Olivier Award for his role as the dad in the West End version of Billy Elliot. He played transvestite Les/Lesley in the third series of ITV sitcom Benidorm and became a regular in series four.

Quote: 'I love the freedom that a bike gives you, the open road. Plus, when I´ve got my helmet on, nobody knows who I am.'

Sherrie Hewson (Actor) .. Joyce

Born: September 17, 1950 in Burton Joyce, Nottinghamshire

Best Known For: Coronation Street and Loose Women.

Early-life: Sherrie Lynn Hutchinson was born in Burton Joyce, Nottinghamshire, on September 17, 1950. Her father was a singer and her mother was a model. From the age of six, Sherrie began touring theatres in revues. She went on to graduate from Rada. Early TV appearances included roles in The Moonstone, Love for Lydia, Z Cars, Minder, Juliet Bravo and The Gentle Touch.

Career: Hewson's talent for comedy led to her working in various Russ Abbot TV shows for more than 10 years. Other comedy credits include All at Number 20, In Loving Memory, Never the Twain, Home to Roost and Barbara. In 1993, she was cast in Coronation Street as accident-prone supermarket assistant Maureen Naylor. She stayed with the show until 1997 and made a brief return in 2006. Another soap beckoned in 2001 when she began playing receptionist Virginia Raven in the short-lived revival of Crossroads. In 2004, she joined the cast of her third soap opera, Emmerdale. She remained on the Yorkshire-based show for two years. Since 2003, Hewson has been a regular panellist on Loose Women. More recently, she has been playing hotel manager Joyce Temple-Savage in ITV sitcom Benidorm. In August 2015, she entered the Celebrity Big Brother house.

Quote: 'Benidorm isn't really the place to find romance,' she says. 'It's either couples or stag dos, or blokes getting drunk and going to the girlie bars.'

Trivia: In 2011, Hewson published her autobiography, Behind the Laughter.

Tony Maudsley (Actor) .. Kenneth

Born: January 30, 1968 in Kirkby, Merseyside

Best Known For: Playing hairdresser Kenneth in Benidorm.

Early-life: Tony was born in Kirkby, Merseyside, on January 30, 1968. He trained to be an actor at The Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. His first acting role was in the 1998 TV movie A Life for a Life.

Career: Maudsley made his film debut in Plunkett & Macleane (1999). His other film credits include Sleepy Hollow (1999), Honest (2000) and Born Romantic (2000). He is largely known for small parts on TV. These have included roles in the likes of Coronation Street, Queer as Folk, Where the Heart Is, Peak Practice, Rose and Maloney, and Doc Martin. He has had recurring roles on In a Land of Plenty, Eyes Down, The Royal and The Job Lot. He is perhaps best known for playing hairdresser Kenneth in Benidorm and Grawp in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007).

Quote: On filming Benidorm: 'It was like being on holiday. It's friendly, there's so much to do.'

Trivia: He won a Royal Television Society Best Newcomer award for his role in A Life for a Life.

Danny Walters (Actor) .. Tiger

Born: June 01, 1993 in Harlow

Best Known For: Playing Tiger Dyke in Benidorm.

Early-life: Danny was born in Harlow on June 1, 1993. He spent a year training at the London School of Musical Theatre.

Career: Walters made his TV debut in an episode of BBC3 combat drama Our World War in 2014. In the same year he became a regular on the ITV sitcom Benidorm, playing Tiger Dyke.

Quote: On landing his role in Benidorm: 'I went from being a young wannabe actor to being surrounded by amazing talent.'

Trivia: He enjoys juggling and playing poker.

Josh Bolt (Actor) .. Rob

Steve Edge (Actor) .. Billy

Jessica Ellerby (Actor) .. Amber

Julie Graham (Actor) .. Sheron

Born: July 24, 1965 in Irvine, North Ayrshire

Best Known For: At Home with the Braithwaites.

Early-life: Born July 24, 1965 in Irvine, North Ayrshire. Her father, John, a singer, left when she was a child. At the age of eight, writer/broadcaster David Webster became her stepfather. Her mother, Betty Gillin, who was also an actress, died of lung cancer, aged 50, when her daughter was 18. Julie made her TV debut in a 1986 episode of Taggart. It was the role of Alison McGrellis in Casualty in 1988 that helped boost her profile.

Career: Graham also starred in the TV series Harry and Life Support. However, she became a household name in comedy drama At Home with the Braithwaites. In 2003 she starred in Kay Mellor's steamy series Between the Sheets, and the same year appeared with Martin Clunes in the drama William and Mary (they were reunited years later when she made a guest appearance in Doc Martin). Her film credits include Silent Scream, Nuns on the Run, The Near Room, Preaching to the Perverted, Bedrooms and Hallways and Some Voices. She's also appeared in a revamp of cult 1970s series Survivors, The Bill, and was the best thing about short-lived BBC archaeological drama Bonekickers. More recently, Graham has enjoyed success with a starring role in ITV's period crime drama The Bletchley Circle and the BBC's Shetland.

Quote: 'Yes I've taken my clothes off and, yes, I've played saucy roles. But for god's sake it's not what I've built my career on. I try to find roles that are a little bit outside the box.'

Trivia: She is a patron of children's hospice Chestnut Tree House.

Honor Kneafsey (Actor) .. Jodie

Bobby Knutt (Actor) .. Eddie

Robin Askwith (Actor) .. Marcus

Born: October 12, 1950 in Southport

Best Known For: His naughty 'Confessions of' films in the 1970s.

Early-life: Born Ronald Askwiths on October 12, 1950, in Southport, Lancashire. He has two younger siblings. After he overcame polio as a boy, his family moved to Eastcote in Middlesex. He attended Merchant Taylors' School, Rickmansworth, until he was expelled. However, he had shown an aptitude for music and the stage, performing in several school productions, and later acquired an agent. He also studied English and drama at the University of Bristol.

Career: Askwith won parts in commercials before catching the eye of director Lindsay Anderson, who cast him in the classic film If..... After this, he was on TV and in films throughout the 1960s and 1970s. He is most famous for his role as Timothy Lea in the Confessions sex comedies. He also appeared in Carry On Girls. He was actually fourth choice for the lead role in the Confessions films; it was previously turned down by Richard Beckinsale, Richard O'Sullivan and Dennis Waterman. He's also appeared in more serious projects, including Pier Paolo Pasolini's version of The Canterbury Tales and Nicholas and Alexandra. Among his other films are Horror Hospital, The Flesh and Blood Show and Tower of Evil. His most recent TV work includes roles in Coronation Street, Benidorm, and Hollyoaks.

Quote: 'I was at a dinner with some actor friends of mine one night, and there was a dig at some of the films I've made in my career, and Michael Winner said to them, 'Ah, yes… but when was the last time any of your films made any money?''

Trivia: Still active on the stage, Askwith regularly appears in pantomimes.

Joseph Balderrama (Actor) .. Dr Bueno

Simon Ruston (Actor) .. Meatloaf tribute

Derren Litten (Writer)

Simon Bird (Producer)

Born: August 19, 1984 in Guildford, Surrey

Best Known For: The Inbetweeners.

Early-life: Simon Antony Bird was born in Guildford, Surrey, in 1984. He attended the Royal Grammar School, Guildford, where he became an accomplished violinist and took part in a variety of orchestras. He then moved on to study English at Queens' College, Cambridge. Alongside his studies, he got involved with the illustrious Footlights drama group, eventually being elected as its chairman in 2005.

Career: After leaving Cambridge, Bird set up the sketch comedy group The House of Windsor with Inbetweeners co-star Joe Thomas. They performed at the Edinburgh Festival in 2007 and 2008, receiving favourable coverage in the national press. His breakthrough came in 2008 when he was cast as Will McKenzie in the delightfully crude high-school sitcom The Inbetweeners. He was named Best Actor at the 2009 British Comedy Awards. Three series of The Inbetweeners was followed by a hugely successful movie version. The movie sequel was released in August 2014. He has also hosted comedy panel show The King is Dead and starred in Friday Night Dinner and Chickens.

Quote: 'I'm pretty geeky I think. I don't really have to act that much! Hopefully I'm not quite as officious as Will, but yeah I've definitely got some geeky tendencies.'

Robin Sheppard (Director)

Sophie Clarke-Jervoise (Executive producer)

Pete Thornton (Executive producer)

12:00 am - 12:55 am, Saturday, March 21 on That's TV (56)

About this Broadcast

Season 8, Episode 1

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