Career: Blanchett started out on the Sydney stage, in both straight dramas and musicals. She made her TV debut in Police Rescue in 1993. Other brief small-screen roles followed, until two miniseries, Heartland and Bordertown, got her noticed. The movies Oscar and Lucinda, and Thank God He Met Lizzie were well-received, but it was 1998's Elizabeth, for which she received an Academy Award nomination, that made her a star. She reprised the role in sequel Elizabeth: The Golden Age. Other notable projects include The Talented Mr Ripley, The Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, The Aviator (for which she won a Best Supporting Actress Oscar), Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and Robin Hood. In 2013, she won an Oscar for Blue Jasmine in the Best Actress category.

Career: Driver's TV debut was in 1990's God on the Rocks. She then appeared in The House of Eliott, and Mr Wroe's Virgins. Her big break came in 1995 when she starred in The Politician's Wife and Circle of Friends. Her most notable movies since include Sleepers, Good Will Hunting (for which she received an Oscar nomination), Grosse Pointe Blank, and Return to Me. In 2003 she appeared in the West End opposite Matthew Perry. She returned to the big screen in the movie version of Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera, and released her debut album in 2004. More recently she's appeared in TV series The Riches and The Deep, and on the big screen in Barney's Version and I Give It A Year.

Career: Everett made his TV debut in The Manhood of Edward Robinson; his first film role came a year later in A Shocking Accident. Following the success of Another Country (both on stage and on film) and Dance with a Stranger in the 1980s, Everett took the potentially risky decision to openly declare his homosexuality. He enjoyed a successful stint as a model and published two novels before playing Julia Roberts' gay confidant in 1997's My Best Friend's Wedding, which helped revitalise his career. Since then he's appeared in such movies as Shakespeare in Love, An Ideal Husband, Stardust, St Trinians and Wild Target.

Career: Moore started her professional career on stage and made her TV debut in 1984 with a recurring role in soap Edge of Night. She then had a two-year stint in As the World Turns, before taking roles in numerous forgettable movies. First made a mark on the big screen in 1993 with small roles in Benny and Joon, Short Cuts and The Fugitive. She followed those up with bigger parts in Nine Months and The Lost World. Her first Oscar nomination followed for 1997's Boogie Nights. She's since been nominated for The End of the Affair, Far from Heaven and The Hours. Other projects include The Kids Are All Right, Carrie and playing Sarah Palin in Game Change.

Career: In 1990, Northam's profile was boosted when he was awarded the Olivier Award for Best Newcomer, thanks to his performance in stage play The Voysey Inheritance. Five years later, he got a part in the Sandra Bullock vehicle The Net, before donning period costume to play opposite Gwyneth Paltrow in the 1996 adaptation of Emma. Since then, Northam has gone on to impress critics and audiences alike with roles in Amistad (1997), Happy, Texas (1999), Enigma (2001), Gosford Park (2001), Possession (2002) and Cypher (2002). More recently, he played Sir Thomas More in historical TV drama The Tudors and starred in the BBC drama White Heat. He also had a part in short-lived American drama Miami Medical.

Career: After spells at Bristol University and the Central School of Speech and Drama, she landed professional roles in a variety of theatrical productions. Her first TV appearance came in 1975's Further Up Pompeii! Parts at the Royal Exchange in the likes of The Rivals and What the Butler Saw gained her huge acclaim. Arguably her biggest stage successes have both come opposite Alan Rickman, in productions of Les Liaisons Dangereuses and Private Lives. Duncan has popped up in TV and film projects such as Reilly: The Ace of Spies, Kit Curran, Prick Up Your Ears, Traffik, GBH, Jake's Progress, Oliver Twist, An Ideal Husband, Doctor Who, Poirot, Alice in Wonderland and Rome.