Ludwig

David Mitchell (Actor) .. John `Ludwig" Taylor

Born: July 14, 1974 in Salisbury

Best Known For: Being one half of hysterical duo Mitchell and Webb.

Early-life: Born David James Stuart Mitchell in Salisbury on July 14, 1974. He has a younger brother called Daniel. His parents were hotel managers who later moved to Oxford, where they became lecturers in hotel management. He claims he always wanted to be an actor or comedian, but told people he planned to become a barrister to please his parents. In 1993 David went to Peterhouse College, Cambridge, to study history. He performed with the famous Cambridge Footlights, eventually becoming the society president. It was in his first year at university that he met Robert Webb at an audition for a student pantomime production of Cinderella.

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.

Quote: 'I think, fundamentally, the people I want to make laugh are British. I can't ever imagine living abroad.'

Trivia: He writes columns for The Observer and The Guardian.

Anna Maxwell Martin (Actor) .. Lucy Betts-Taylor

Best Known For: Bleak House.

Early-life: Born Anna Charlotte Martin in Beverley, East Yorkshire, on May 10, 1977. She has an older brother called Adam, and their mother gave up her job as a research scientist to raise them. Their father was the managing director of a pharmaceutical company; he died after a battle with cancer when Anna was 24. After leaving school, she studied history at Liverpool University, then enrolled at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art.

Career: Martin's TV debut came in an episode of Midsomer Murders, but she first made a mark on the acting world on stage, thanks to an acclaimed performance in the National Theatre's epic, six-hour adaptation of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials during the winter of 2003 and 2004. A year later she won a Bafta for her performance in the BBC's Bleak House; she picked up her second Bafta for Poppy Shakespeare in 2008. In fact, everything Martin touches seems to turn to gold - she's suffered very few flops or misfires in her career so far. On stage she's impressed in the likes of The Entertainer, Cabaret and Measure for Measure, while other TV projects include Freefall, Moonshot, South Riding, The Bletchley Circle and Death Comes to Pemberley (which was partly shot in her home town). Martin has been less active on film, with Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa (2013) and Philomena (2013) the highlights.

Quote: On period dramas: 'I just don't like it: the hair, the make-up, the corsets, the hours in costume. I'd rather have no make-up on and wear an anorak.'

Trivia: When she was a child, Martin wanted to be Whitney Houston.

Dipo Ola (Actor) .. DI Russell Carter

Sophie Willan (Actor) .. Holly Pinder

Gerran Howell (Actor) .. DC Simon Evans

Izuka Hoyle (Actor) .. DS Alice Finch

Dylan Hughes (Actor) .. Henry Betts-Taylor

Ralph Ineson (Actor) .. Chief Constable Ziegler

Born: December 15, 1969 in Leeds

Best Known For: Playing Chris Finch in the sitcom The Office.

Early-life: Ralph Michael Ineson was born in Leeds on December 15, 1969. He took Theatre Studies at Lancaster University and spent time as a teacher at York Sixth Form College.

Career: Probably best known for his recurring role as Chris Finch in the sitcom The Office, Ineson has also starred in Playing the Field, Between the Sheets, Coronation Street, Suburban Shootout and Waterloo Road. More recently, he has starred in the miniseries Titanic, Game of Thrones, Case Sensitive, Prey and Peaky Blinders. A prolific character actor, he has more than 100 TV and film acting credits to his name.

Quote: On his role in The Office: 'Finch was such a tiny role - not much more than a week's work in the end. But he did amazing things for my career.'

Trivia: Ineson supports Leeds United.

Dorothy Atkinson (Actor) .. DCS Carol Shaw

Yasmin Dacre (Actor) .. Sasha Sparks

Suzanne Ahmet (Actor) .. Gillian Botley

Sophie Allen (Actor) .. Ms Chordwell's Interpreter

Rose Ayling-Ellis (Actor) .. Ms Freya Chordwell

Jakub Bednarczyk (Actor) .. Young John

Frankie Minchella (Actor) .. Isaac Upton

Karl Pilkington (Actor) .. DI Matt Neville

Born: September 23, 1972 in Trafford, Greater Manchester

Best Known For: Being Ricky Gervais's best mate.

Early-life: Karl Pilkington was born on 23 September, 1972, in Trafford, Greater Manchester. He was not much of an academic at school and spent most of his spare time riding his bike and talking with his pet magpie. A music lover, he worked for a time making audio tapes, then stumbled into radio producing, and got a job at Xfm, where he produced a show for Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant.

Career: His dry, world-weary contributions to Xfm were so popular with listeners that he, Gervas and Merhcant started recording podcasts and audiobooks, which smashed download records. His musings turned him into a household name and after a few minor TV projects, he became an international star with travel show An Idiot Abroad. His old podcast rambles were turned into cartoon form on the Ricky Gervais Show and he made his acting debut in Derek on Channel 4.

Quote: "I've always thought blind people must be really good listeners."

Trivia: Pilkington has provided voiceovers for a number of TV adverts.

Pablo Raybould (Actor) .. Barry

Harry Spalding (Actor) .. School Boy

Sam Swainsbury (Actor) .. Mr Bishop

Christopher Parramore (Actor) .. Mr Durose

Derek Jacobi (Actor) .. Mr Todd

Born: October 22, 1938 in London

Best Known For: His classical roles.

Early-life: Derek George Jacobi was born on October 22, 1938, in Leytonstone, east London. His mother was a secretary and his father managed a department store. He is an only child. He became hooked on movies and dancing as a boy and played Hamlet at school, with the production later appearing at the Edinburgh Festival. During his time there, he was invited to meet an agent, who told him that, at 18, he was too young to become a star. Jacobi spent the next three years studying history at Cambridge, where he befriended Ian McKellen and Trevor Nunn.

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.

Quote: 'As an actor conscious that you are in a theatre, you still have to make it look as spontaneous as if you did not know that you are being watched by 1,000 pairs of eyes.'

Trivia: He received a knighthood in 1994.

Mark Brotherhood (Writer)

Georgie Fallon (Producer)

Robert McKillop (Director)

Kenton Allen (Executive producer)

Saurabh Kakkar (Executive producer)

Kathryn O'Connor (Executive producer)

Chris Sussman (Executive producer)

9:30 pm - 10:30 pm, Friday, July 24 on BBC Three (23)

About this Broadcast

Season 1, Episode 5

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