- published: 01 Jul 2016
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Graham William Walker (born 4 April 1963), better known by the stage name Graham Norton, is an Irish television and radio presenter, comedian, and actor based in the United Kingdom. He is a five-time BAFTA TV Award winner for his comedy chat show The Graham Norton Show. Previously shown on BBC Two, it took the prestigious Friday night slot on BBC One from Jonathan Ross in 2010. He also presents on BBC Radio 2 and is the BBC television commentator of the Eurovision Song Contest, which led Hot Press to describe him as "the 21st century's answer to Terry Wogan". Norton is known for his innuendo-laden dialogue and flamboyant presentation style. In 2012, he sold his production company, So Television, to ITV for around £17 million.
Norton was born in Clondalkin, a suburb of Dublin, but grew up in Bandon, County Cork, Ireland. His family are Protestant. His father's family were from County Wicklow, while his mother was from Belfast. He was educated at Bandon Grammar School, in West Cork, and then University College, Cork (U.C.C.), where he spent two years studying English and French in the 1980s but did not complete his studies. In June 2013 he received an honorary doctorate from University College Cork; he occasionally mentions this in order to win on-air arguments on his BBC Radio 2 show.
Sandra Annette Bullock (/ˈsændrə ˈbʊlək/; born July 26, 1964) is an American actress and producer. She is one of Hollywood's highest-paid actresses, and is the recipient of one Academy Award from two nominations, and one Golden Globe Award from five nominations. She was named "Most Beautiful Woman" by People magazine in 2015.
Bullock made her acting debut with a minor role in the 1987 thriller Hangmen. She made her television debut in the television film Bionic Showdown: The Six Million Dollar Man and the Bionic Woman (1989) and played the lead role in the short-lived NBC sitcom Working Girl. Her breakthrough role was in the film Demolition Man (1993), after which she starred in several successful films including Speed (1994), While You Were Sleeping (1995), The Net (1995), A Time to Kill (1996), Hope Floats (1998), and Practical Magic (1998). Bullock achieved further success in the 2000s and 2010s with starring roles in Miss Congeniality (2000), Two Weeks Notice (2002), Crash (2004), The Proposal (2009) and The Heat (2013). She was awarded the Academy Award for Best Actress and the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Drama for playing Leigh Anne Tuohy in The Blind Side (2009), and also nominated in the same categories for her performance in Gravity (2013). Bullock's greatest commercial success is the animated comedy film Minions (2015), which grossed over US$1 billion at the box office. In addition to acting, Bullock is the founder of the production company Fortis Films. She has produced some of the films in which she starred, including Two Weeks Notice, Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous and All About Steve. She was an executive producer of the popular ABC sitcom George Lopez and made several appearances during its run.
Dame Julia "Julie" Elizabeth Andrews, DBE, (née Wells; born 1 October 1935) is an English film and stage actress, singer, author, theatre director and dancer. Andrews, a former child actress and singer, appeared on the West End in 1948, and made her Broadway debut in a 1954 production of The Boy Friend. She rose to prominence starring in musicals such as My Fair Lady and Camelot, both of which earned her Tony Award nominations. In 1957, she appeared on television with the title role in the musical Cinderella, which was seen by over 100 million viewers.
She made her feature film debut in Mary Poppins (1964), with her performance in the title role winning her the Academy Award for Best Actress. She received her second Oscar nomination for The Sound of Music (1965), playing Maria, and won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Musical. Adjusted for inflation, the latter film is the third-highest grossing film of all time. Between 1964 and 1967, she also had box office successes with, The Americanization of Emily, receiving a nomination for the BAFTA Award for Best British Actress in a Leading Role, Hawaii, Alfred Hitchcock's Torn Curtain, and Thoroughly Modern Millie, making her the most successful film star in the world at the time.
Channing Matthew Tatum (born April 26, 1980) is an American actor, film producer, dancer, and model. Tatum made his film debut in the drama film Coach Carter (2005). His breakthrough role was in the 2006 dance film Step Up, which introduced him to a wider audience. He is known for his portrayal of the character Duke in the 2009 action film G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra and its 2013 sequel G.I. Joe: Retaliation. Although both G.I. Joe films received negative reviews from critics, they were commercially successful, grossing more than $300 million at the box office.
Tatum is also known for his portrayal as Magic Mike in the 2012 comedy film Magic Mike, and its 2015 sequel Magic Mike XXL, which he produced and was inspired by his early life, and Greg Jenko in the action-comedy film 21 Jump Street and its 2014 sequel, 22 Jump Street, based on the 1980s television series of the same name, achieving critical and commercial success.
Tatum has also appeared in the commercially successful romantic films Dear John (2010) and The Vow (2012). His other films include She's the Man (2006), The Dilemma (2011), White House Down (2013) and the drama Foxcatcher (2014), for which he received critical praise.
Billie Paul Piper (born Leian Paul Piper; 22 September 1982), previously known by the stage mononym Billie, is an English singer, dancer and actress. She made her debut in Scratchy & Co. (1995–1998), and at the age of 15, she signed a recording contract and released her debut single "Because We Want To", which debuted at number one in the UK and made her the youngest artist ever to debut at number one. The single was followed by Piper's album Honey to the B (1998), which was certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ) and platinum by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI). In 2000, she released her second album, Walk of Life. In 2003, she retired from the recording industry and launched an acting career.
Piper's transition into acting began in 2004. Her most famous role is as Rose Tyler, companion to The Doctor from 2005 to 2006, in the BBC sci-fi series Doctor Who, a role she reprised in 2008, 2010, and 2013. In 2007, Broadcast magazine listed Piper at no. 6 in its "Hot 100" list of influential on-screen performers; she was the top woman on the list. From 2007 until 2011, she starred as the high-flying escort Belle de Jour in the TV series Secret Diary of a Call Girl. She currently stars as Brona Croft in the Showtime series Penny Dreadful.