Norris Dewar McWhirter, CBE (12 August 1925 – 19 April 2004) was a writer, political activist, co-founder of the Freedom Association, and a television presenter. He and his twin brother, Ross, were known internationally for the Guinness Book of Records, a book they wrote and annually updated together between 1955 and 1975. After Ross McWhirter's assassination by the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA), Norris McWhirter carried on alone as editor.

Norris and Ross McWhirter were the twin sons of William McWhirter, editor of the Sunday Pictorial newspaper, and Margaret Williamson. In 1929, as William McWhirter was working on the founding of the Northcliffe Newspapers chain of provincial newspapers, the family moved to "Aberfoyle", in Broad Walk, Winchmore Hill. Like their elder brother, Kennedy (born 1923), Ross and Norris were educated at Marlborough College and Trinity College, Oxford, where, at his choice, he completed his law degree in two years rather than the usual three. Between 1943 and 1946 Norris served with the Royal Navy on escort duty in Atlantic and on board a minesweeper in the Pacific.

David Lionel Baddiel (born 28 May 1964) is an American-born English comedian, novelist and television presenter. He is known for his work alongside Rob Newman in the ground-breaking The Mary Whitehouse Experience and partnership with Frank Skinner. Besides comedy, Baddiel is also a published novelist and has gone into screenwriting as well.

Baddiel was born in New York, and moved to England when he was four months old. His father, Colin Brian Baddiel, was a Welsh research chemist with Unilever before being made redundant in the 1980s, after which he sold Dinky Toys at Grays Antique Market. His mother, Sarah, was a refugee from Nazi Germany. She moved to the UK at five months old with her parents in 1939. Baddiel is the middle of three sons.

Baddiel grew up in Dollis Hill, Willesden, North London. He attended primary school at the North West London Jewish Day School in Brent. After studying at Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School in Elstree, an independent school near Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, he read English at King's College, Cambridge, where he was a member of the Cambridge Footlights, and graduated with a double first. He began studies for a PhD in English at University College London, but did not complete it.

Alan Ross Mayfield McWhirter (12 August 1925 – 27 November 1975), known as Ross McWhirter, was, with his twin brother, Norris McWhirter, co-founder of the Guinness Book of Records and a contributor to Record Breakers. He was assassinated by the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA).

McWhirter was the son of William McWhirter, editor of the Sunday Pictorial newspaper, and Margaret 'Bunty' Williamson. He was born at "Giffnock" (after Giffnock Church in Glasgow, where the McWhirters were married), 10 Branscombe Gardens, Winchmore Hill, London, N21. In 1929, as William was working on the founding of the Northcliffe Newspapers chain of provincial newspapers, the family moved to "Aberfoyle", in Broad Walk, Winchmore Hill. Like his brothers, Ross McWhirter was educated at Marlborough College and Trinity College, Oxford. Between 1943 and 1946 Ross served with the Royal Navy on board a minesweeper in the Mediterranean.

Ross and Norris both became sports journalists in 1950. In 1951, they published Get to Your Marks, and later in 1951 they founded an agency to provide facts and figures to Fleet Street, setting out, in Norris McWhirter's words: "to supply facts and figures to newspapers, yearbooks, encyclopaedias and advertisers."

Roy Castle OBE (31 August 1932 in Scholes, near Holmfirth, West Riding of Yorkshire – 2 September 1994 in Buckinghamshire) was an English dancer, singer, comedian, actor, television presenter and musician. He attended Honley High School, where there is now a building in his name. He was a talented jazz trumpet player.

The son of a railwayman, he was a tap dancer from an early age and trained at Nora Bray's school of dance with Audrey Spencer who later turned out to have a big dance school, and after leaving Holme Valley Grammar School he started his career as an entertainer in an amateur concert party. As a young performer in the 1950s, he lived in Cleveleys near Blackpool and appeared there at the local Queen's Theatre, turning professional in 1953 as a stooge for Jimmy Clitheroe and Jimmy James. By 1958 he was appearing at the Royal Variety Show. As a singer, he released one charting single in 1960, the Christmas song "Little White Berry".

In the mid-1960s he starred in the BBC television show The Roy Castle Show. In 1965, he appeared in the film Dr. Who and the Daleks, playing the role of Dr. Who's first male assistant, Ian Chesterton, quite differently from the way it had been played in the original television series by William Russell. He also appeared in Dr. Terror's House of Horrors as a jazz musician suffering a curse after copying voodoo tunes. He also appeared in Carry On up the Khyber in 1968. In 1973 Castle teamed up with actor & comedian Ronnie Barker in the original one-off called Another Fine Mess (an episode from a series called Seven of One). Barker was one of Castle's best friends, and paid tribute to their work together shortly after Castle's death.

Sir Christopher Frank Carandini Lee, CBE, CStJ (born 27 May 1922) is an English actor and musician. Lee initially portrayed villains and became famous for his role as Count Dracula in a string of Hammer Horror films. Other notable roles include Francisco Scaramanga in the James Bond film The Man with the Golden Gun (1974), Saruman in The Lord of the Rings film trilogy (2001–2003), and Count Dooku in the final two films of the Star Wars prequel trilogy (2002, 2005). He has collaborated with director Tim Burton in five films, most recently with Dark Shadows (2012).

Lee considers his most important role to be his portrayal of Pakistan's founder Muhammad Ali Jinnah in the biopic Jinnah (1998); however, he considers his best role to be that of Lord Summerisle in the British cult classic The Wicker Man (1973), which he also believes to be his best film. Lee is well known for his deep, strong voice and imposing height. He has performed roles in 275 films since 1946 making him the Guinness World Record holder for most film acting roles ever. He was knighted for services to drama and charity in 2009, and received the BAFTA Fellowship in 2011.