Career: After numerous small TV and film roles, including parts in acclaimed dramas The Onion Field and Body Heat, Danson's big break came in 1982 when he was cast as retired baseball player and barkeeper Sam Malone in US sitcom Cheers. The show ran for more than a decade, and during that time, Danson received nine Emmy nominations, winning twice, and two Golden Globes. He went on to star in the successful sitcom Becker, which ran for six years. He's also starred in a number of films, including Three Men and a Baby and its sequel, Made in America, Saving Private Ryan and a highly acclaimed adaptation of Gulliver's Travels. More recent TV work includes roles in Damages, Bored to Death, and CSI.

Career: After a spell as a stand-up comic, Thompson teamed up with Fry and Laurie for TV sketch show Alfresco, starred in West End smash Me and My Girl, and acclaimed dramas Tutti Frutti and Fortunes of War. Her first film was 1989's The Tall Guy. Already a familiar face in the UK, she became an international star thanks to her Oscar-winning role in 1992's Howards End. She later won another Academy Award, this time for writing the screenplay for Sense and Sensibility. She also wrote as well as starred in Nanny McPhee and its sequel. Thompson's other movies include Dead Again, In the Name of the Father, The Remains of the Day, Junior, Primary Colors, Love Actually, Stranger Than Fiction, I Am Legend, Brideshead Revisited, The Boat That Rocked, three Harry Potter movies and Saving Mr Banks.

Career: Determined to become a serious actor, Grammer spent two years at New York's Juilliard School. He then worked in theatre before making his TV debut in 1983 miniseries Kennedy. He had a stint in soap Another World, and in 1984 began playing Dr Frasier Crane in Cheers. After Cheers ended in 1993, he launched the hugely popular spin-off series Frasier. In addition to starring in 264 editions of the sitcom, he directed more than 30 episodes. Grammer has also starred in X-Men: The Last Stand, short-lived sitcoms Back to You and Hank, and the dramas Boss and Partners. He is also the voice of Sideshow Bob in The Simpsons.

Career: Throughout the 1970s, Ratzenberger performed across the UK with Ray Hassett as comedy theatrical duo Sal's Meat Market. He made his film debut in The Ritz (1976). Minor roles followed in the likes of Superman (1978), The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Gandhi (1982). His big break came in 1982 when he began playing a postal worker in the hugely popular American sitcom Cheers. The show ran until 1993 and Ratzenberger picked up two Emmy nominations during the run. He made a guest appearance in Frasier as Cliff Clavin. He is also well known for voicing Pixar characters, including Hamm the Piggy Bank in the Toy Story series, Tom the construction worker in Up, and Earl in The Good Dinosaur.