Career: Pemberton began his professional career on stage, but suffered a setback when he had a heart attack at the age of 25 while working in Germany. He went on to feature in Ken Russell's Alice in RussiaLand in 1995, but it was The League of Gentleman that was his first major success, first on radio, then on TV and film. He also appeared in the remake of Randall & Hopkirk (Deceased), Gormenghast, Shameless, The Life and Death of Peter Sellers and Blackpool. The latter co-starred David Tennant, and the duo were reunited in 2008 for a two-part Doctor Who adventure. Other projects include the Woody Allen film Match Point, Lassie, Psychoville, and Benidorm.

Career: In 1997 the quartet won the Perrier Award, and their subsequent radio series, On the Town with The League of Gentlemen, set in the fictional town of Spent, won a Sony Award. In 1999 the League moved to TV - and Royston Vasey - with subsequent series in 2000 (including a typically sinister Christmas special) and 2002; plus a film, The League of Gentlemen's Apocalypse, in 2005. Outside of the League, Shearsmith has appeared alongside Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer in the comedies Catterick and House of Fools. He also popped up in Spaced and TLC. His other work includes Eric and Ernie, The Widower and Chasing Shadows on the small screen, and Burke and Hare, The World's End and A Field in England on the big screen. He has also appeared on the stage in Art, The Producers and Betty Blue Eyes. He re-teamed with fellow League star Steve Pemberton for Psychoville and Inside No 9.

Career: After graduating from Rada in 2008, Raine performed on stage in Simon Stephens' Harper Regan. She followed this up with parts in David Hare's Gethsemane and Mike Bartlett's Earthquakes in London. In 2009, she made her TV debut in Garrow's Law and a year later appeared in an edition of Robin Hood. Her big break came in 2012 when she bagged the role of Jenny Lee in popular BBC drama Call the Midwife, which she played for three series. She has also appeared in an episode of Doctor Who, Doctor Who-based one-off drama An Adventure in Space and Time, Fortitude, Line of Duty, Partners in Crime and Wolf Hall. On the big screen she has featured in horror hit The Woman in Black.

Career: After appearing in Confessions of a Pop Performer and Space: 1999, she became a mainstream British star in 1976 series Rock Follies. Despite having little fame in North America, her appearance on shampoo commercials helped make her a cult star, largely thanks to chat show host Johnny Carson who used the ads as a running gag. Rula has been a TV regular in Britain for decades, starring in Minder, Boon, Casualty, Return of the Saint and Robin of Sherwood. She's also no stranger to soapland, having starred in Doctors and EastEnders. From 2009 to 2011 she played Coronation Street's Claudia Colby, leaving the role for the stage show Calendar Girls.

Career: Following acclaimed performances at university, Jacobi joined Birmingham Rep. He was spotted by Laurence Olivier, who invited him to join the National Theatre Company. He made his film debut alongside Olivier in 1965's Othello. Since then, Jacobi has continued to make acclaimed appearances on stage and screen. Among his films are The Day of the Jackal, The Odessa File, Love Is the Devil, Gladiator, Gosford Park, The King's Speech and Hereafter. He inspired Kenneth Branagh to become an actor and worked alongside him in Henry V, Hamlet and Dead Again. Jacobi won a Bafta for I, Claudius in 1977, starred in the medieval-set series Cadfael, played The Master in Doctor Who, is the narrator of In the Night Garden and scored a surprise hit with Last Tango in Halifax.