Career: Appeared in 1962's The Loneliness of The Long Distance Runner and he became famous for The Servant a year later. He then starred in Thoroughly Modern Millie, The Chase and Isadora. In 1970, he made Performance with Mick Jagger, but then dropped out of showbusiness to do vocational work with Christian missionary sect The Navigators. Apart from religious low-budget movie No Longer Alone, he didn't act again until Country in 1981. Since then, he's appeared in acclaimed productions A Passage to India, Greystoke, The Remains of the Day, Jinnah, Sexy Beast and the remake of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

Career: Sykes provided scripts for Fraser and Frankie Howerd, before moving on to radio shows such as Educating Archie and Variety Bandbox. In 1955, he wrote and directed the spoof Pantomania, beginning his career in TV. By 1957 he was almost totally deaf, forcing him to lip-read his fellow actors so he didn't miss his cues. The 1960s saw him team up with Hattie Jacques for the first time since his radio days, and their comedy partnership lasted until her death in 1980. As well as his eponymous sitcom, Sykes other credits include silent comedy The Plank (which he also directed), Curry and Chips, and The 19th Hole, as well as various stage plays and such movies as Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines, The Others, and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. He died on July 4, 2012, at the age of 89.