Benidorm

Paul Bazely (Actor) .. Troy

Josh Bolt (Actor) .. Rob

Nathan Bryon (Actor) .. Joey

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.

Steve Edge (Actor) .. Billy

Adam Gillen (Actor) .. Liam

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.

Selina Griffiths (Actor) .. Pauline

Elsie Kelly (Actor) .. Noreen

Bobby Knutt (Actor) .. Eddie

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.

Johnny Vegas (Actor) .. Geoff - The Oracle

Born: September 11, 1971 in St Helens, Lancashire

Best Known For: His hoarse voice.

Early-life: Born Michael Joseph Pennington in St Helens, Lancashire, on September 11, 1971, he's the youngest of four children. As a child, he wanted to be a priest, and joined a seminary at the age of 11, but left after four terms. He then attended an all-boys grammar school before studying art and ceramics at Middlesex University. Following his graduation, he worked in a bar and went through periods of being unemployed before trying comedy, performing as the character of failed potter and disillusioned entertainer Johnny Vegas.

Career: Vegas's big break came in 1997 when he was nominated for the prestigious Perrier Award at the Edinburgh Festival. He made his TV debut in the one-off Johnny Vegas TV Show the following year. In 2001, he landed a role in the Paul Whitehouse sitcom Happiness, which won him the Best Newcomer trophies at the Royal Television Society and British Comedy Awards, although it was arguably his appearance in a series of cult adverts with a sock monkey for ITV Digital that made him a household name. Since then, he's been a regular panellist on Shooting Stars, acted in series Tipping the Velvet, Bleak House, Dead Man Weds, Ideal, Massive, Benidorm, Still Open All Hours and presented his own show, 18 Stone of Idiot. He was also in Johnny Depp film The Libertine and The Harry Hill Movie.

Quote: 'This is a good job that gives us a good life, you can't expect to turn that off when it suits you.'

Trivia: Vegas released an autobiography, Becoming Johnny Vegas, in 2013.

Kate Fitzgerald (Actor) .. Loretta

Shelley Longworth (Actor) .. Sam

Michael Fenton Stevens (Actor) .. Sir Henry

Simon Greenall (Actor) .. Neville

Amanda Barrie (Actor) .. Psychic Sue

Born: September 14, 1935 in Ashton-Under-Lyne, near Manchester

Best Known For: Playing Alma in Coronation Street.

Early-life: Born Shirley Anne Broadbent on September 14, 1935, in Ashton-Under-Lyne, near Manchester. She was named after Shirley Temple by her showbiz-mad parents and made her stage debut as a Christmas tree fairy at her grandfather's local theatre. At the age of three, she began singing and taking ballet lessons, but was expelled from school for playing truant to attend extra lessons. She studied drama at Cone-Ripman School and moved to London at 13 to become a chorus girl, following her parents' divorce.

Career: Barrie's TV debut was as a hostess on Double Your Money in 1955. She changed her name in 1958 and appeared in West End shows such as Private Lives, Hobson's Choice and Any Wednesday. Various TV and movie roles followed, including Danger Man, The Morecambe And Wise Show, Carry On Cabby (1963), Carry On Cleo (1964) and One of Our Dinosaurs Is Missing (1975). She concentrated on theatre until Coronation Street made her a household name. Her character, Alma, was supposed to be in the show for a fortnight, but she became a regular in 1989 until being killed off in 2000. She then went on to appear in Doctors and Bad Girls. In 2004, she was a contestant on the first series of Hell's Kitchen, where she had several heated arguments with chef Gordon Ramsay.

Quote: 'I always say you can't play emotional things unless you are emotional, and you can't play a sense of humour scene unless you have a sense of humour. You have to be as honest as possible.'

Trivia: Barrie has appeared in a number of pantomimes.

Uri Geller (Actor) .. Himself

Born: December 20, 1946 in Tel Aviv, Israel

Best Known For: Spoon-bending.

Early-life: Uri Geller was born on December 20, 1946, in Israel. He is of Hungarian and Austrian descent, and his mother was distantly related to Sigmund Freud. He became aware of his ‘powers' at the age of four. During a meal, his spoon curled up in his hand and broke, even though he had applied no physical pressure. When he was 11, he went to live in Cyprus, where he remained until he was 17. Geller returned to Israel, served as a paratrooper in the army and fought in the Six-Day War of 1967 during which he was wounded in action.

Career: In 1968, Geller spent a year as a model and was photographed for various adverts. The following year he began to demonstrate his telepathic and psychokinetic powers, becoming a household name in Israel. He made his mark in Europe in 1972, attracting widespread attention after stopping a cable car in mid-air and taking part in various laboratory experiments. In 1991, he hit the headlines when he stopped Britain's most famous clock, Big Ben. He has also wiped computer disks with his mind, tracked serial killers and coached Premier League footballers, industrialists and Formula One drivers. He appeared as a contestant on I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! in 2002. Since then, he has worked on TV shows in Israel, America, Germany and Holland. Away from spoon-bending, he has written several fiction and non-fiction books.

Quote: 'I was sued by a woman who claimed that she became pregnant because she watched me on TV and I bent her contraceptive coil.'

Trivia: Married for more than 30 years to Hannah. Michael Jackson was the best man when they renewed their wedding vows in 2001.

David Sant (Director)

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.'

Paul Jackson (Executive producer)

Derren Litten (Executive producer)

Mark Brotherhood (Writer)

12:00 am - 01:00 am, Wednesday, April 1 on That's TV (56)

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Season 9, Episode 6

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