Career: After graduating, Mitchell worked an usher at the Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith. He and Webb took a number of shows to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival before being asked to write for Alexander Armstrong and Ben Miller and for surreal comedy series Big Train. In 2001, they made their first sketch show, The Mitchell and Webb Situation, which ran for six episodes on the now-defunct cable channel Play UK. Their next project came in 2003, with the award-winning Channel 4 sitcom Peep Show. They've also worked together on That Mitchell and Webb Sound, That Mitchell and Webb Look and the film Magicians. Solo, Mitchell has appeared on 10 O'Clock Live and numerous panel shows, including Would I Lie to You?, where he's a regular team captain. His autobiography, Back Story: A Memoir, was published in 2012.

Career: His success as a stand-up was crowned when he won an award at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. He came to the attention of TV bosses after a stint on the radio. Lee was cast in The Sketch show alongside long-term collaborator Tim Vine. After a short-lived stint presenting They Think It's All Over, Mack and Vine began work on Not Going Out. The series revolves around two friends with opposite backgrounds and personalities, much like the two comics themselves. Mack has recently become a regular on comedy panel shows such as Would I Lie to You? and Have I Got News for You. He also has sell-out tours and best-selling DVDs to his name.

Career: While still presenting, Brydon ventured into comedy, and made ends meet by providing voices for adverts and animations. A small role in Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels inspired him to make a short film of his comic characters; series of Marion & Geoff, A Small Summer Party and The Keith Barret Show followed. Other credits include Director's Commentary, Human Remains, Supernova, A Cock and Bull Story, Little Britain, Annually Retentive and Gavin & Stacey. He's also hosted his own BBC chat show and has chaired the comedy panel show Would I Lie to You? since 2009. In 2010, he starred alongside Steve Coogan in the partially improvised BBC Two sitcom The Trip and has since appeared in its follow-up.

Career: During the 1990s, Hawes starred in music videos for the likes of Suede and James before gaining roles in TV in Heartbeat, Karaoke and The Beggar Bride. She got her TV breakthrough when she appeared as Zoe Reynolds in spy drama Spooks from 2002 until 2004. Then she went on to appear as Rose in The Vicar of Dibley, as Jane in Death at a Funeral (2007) and as the voice of Lara Croft in the Tomb Raider video game series, starting with Tomb Raider: Legend. She was cast as Alex Drake in Ashes to Ashes, a spin-off of the series Life on Mars, in 2007 and the series lasted until 2009. Following this, she appeared in such TV series as Identity and Upstairs, Downstairs. In 2014, she joined the cast of Line of Duty as Detective Inspector Lindsay Denton and guest starred as Ms Delphox in Doctor Who. More recently, she has appeared in The Missing and The Durrells.

Career: Mangan became a regular on the West End stage, and apart from some foreign adverts, steered clear of TV work for years. He made his film debut in Martha, Meet Frank, Daniel and Laurence in 1998, and had a small role in Billy Elliot. Early TV appearances came in Big Bad World, Sword of Honour, In Defence and Human Remains before his big break as the lead in Adrian Mole: The Cappuccino Years. He's worked consistently in movies and on TV ever since, with roles in Jane Hall, Marple, Never Better, I'm Alan Partridge, Hyperdrive, and the acclaimed Green Wing. His recent work includes Dirk Gently and Episodes on TV, as well as several well-received stage performances.

Career: He reached the finals of the So You Think You're Funny? talent contest at the 2005 Edinburgh Fringe, when he was just 18. He made his Edinburgh Fringe debut in 2007. Two years later he appeared on BBC One's Michael McIntyre's Comedy Roadshow, which hugely boosted his profile to the extend he played the Glasgow SECC in 2010. His debut DVD was a huge hit and he is now a TV regular.

Career: Cox obtained first class and MPhil degrees in physics from the University of Manchester. After D:Ream disbanded in 1997, Cox was awarded his PhD in high energy particle physics at Manchester University. As professor of particle physics at the University of Manchester, he became involved in working on the Large Hadron Collider in Switzerland, and during media interviews, proved himself a natural in front of the camera. He was quickly snapped up by the BBC and has since become a huge star, presenting Wonders of the Universe and Wonders of the Solar System, among numerous other documentaries.