The Cast
Dara Ó Briain is an award-winning Irish stand-up comedian. He began his career as a children's TV presenter on RTÉ (Radio and Television of Ireland). He used to host panel show The Panel, and regularly appears on other panel shows such as QI, Have I Got News for You and Argumental. He has also appeard on stand-up TV show Live at the Apollo, and starred alongside Griff Rhys Jones and Rory McGrath in the Three Men in a Boat series.
Quote: [on being called middle-aged] "I get that a lot, but I'm only 34, for feck's sake! But then, I've had that all my life; I'm used to it. I've always looked older than I am, like everybody's dad. When I was nine, I looked eleven, and so on. I've never been ID'd in bars - never. Once, I based an entire show on me looking older than I was. I got the audience to guess my age: the average turned out to be 37. I was 29 at the time."
Hugh Dennis is an English comedian, actor, writer, impressionist and voiceover artist. He has starred in TV shows such as Brass Eye, My Hero and Outnumbered, and co-wrote and starred in The Mary Whitehouse Experience and The Imaginatively Titled Punt & Dennis Show. He provided various voices for Spitting Image, and does voiceovers for adverts including Tesco.
Quote: "I don't have that many regrets. Not because I have led a charmed life in which I have always made the right choices, but rather because, as a comedian, I have always known that every disaster is a potential anecdote."
Andy had appeared a guest six times before becoming a team captain in series three. He is an English comedian and writer who has written for TV shows Noel's House Party and Spitting Image, as well as several radio shows. He has appeared on other panel shows including QI and Argumental, and has written and performed alongside comedy partner Henry Naylor.
Quote: "We are no longer allowed to incite hatred against lesbians, gays and transgenders. But it's OK, we can still make jokes about them, which is lucky isn't it? Especially when it comes to transgenders - if you take a lady home and find out she's got a cock, you wanna be able to have a bloody good laugh about it!"
Russell Howard is an English comedian. He regularly appears on TV panel shows, including 8 Out of 10 Cats, Would I Lie to You? and Nevermind the Buzzcocks. He appeared on Mock the Week four times before becoming a team captain in series four. He appeared in Law of the Playground and currently hosts his own show Russell Howard's Good News.
Quote: "There's so much woe and misery in the world that being one of those comics that goes on and complains about it is just reinforcing it. There are these wonderful moments that happen in our lives that don't get reported on."
Frankie Boyle is a Scottish comedian and writer, best known for his 'dark' humour. He has appeared on many panel shows including 8 Out of 10 Cats, Would I Lie to You?, Have I Got News for You and Argumental. He has also been a regular 'talking head' on Law of the Playground, and was a guest host on Nevermind the Buzzcocks. He has written for shows Distraction, FAQ U and TV Heaven, Telly Hell.
Quote: "In general, my stuff tends to be more challenging than the other comics I'm on with. So if everyone else is quite crowd-pleasing, I'll come on and try to tense them up with material that they don't really want, so that I've got that edge of nervousness to work with. If you did a slick set every gig you'd never really develop, you have to be dead disciplined about mixing it up and not retreating into the same old material."
Rory Bremner is a Scottish comedian and impressionist. He has done impressions on several shows including Alistair McGowan's Big Impression, voiceovers for Spitting Image, and shows he's written such as Rory Bremner, and Bremner, Bird and Fortune. He has also appeared on other panel shows - Have I Got News for You, Whose Line Is It Anyway? and QI.
Quote: "I remember driving home one evening while they were reviewing the papers on the radio. One of the articles was about me separating from my wife. It's a weird thing to listen to a news report about the break-up of your marriage."