Jessica Hynes

Jessica Hynes (née Stevenson - she's been married since 2002 and recently started using her married name) has always been a performer, appearing with the National Youth Theatre as a teenager, but it was the satisfying chortles of life as a comedian which won the battle for her heart from the start.

Teaming up with Katy Carmichael (who'd go on to play Twist in Spaced) to perform as 'The Liz Hurleys' Jess was already proving her comic mettle, but it was appearing in the short-lived 1996 sketch show Asylum which changed her life for good. Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright were part of the Asylum process and, while that show didn't exactly set the comedy world alight, it led to an idea which did – Spaced.

Co-writing and starring in one of the best Britcoms of the last twenty years is all well and good, but Jess has never been one to rest on her comedy laurels. Popping up in The Royle Family as a frumpy neighbour proved Jessica can act, and no doubt helped her land a role as Bridget Jones' bessie mate in one of the biggest British movies of the decade. Oh, and a role in Shaun of the Dead - one of the others.

Jessica's been busy splitting her time between the stage in proper high-brow plays, the screen (including living every nerd's dream on the new Doctor Who) and taking the lead in a sitcom which did little for her agent's career – According to Bex. Well, everyone's allowed one slip-up aren't they? Keen to make amends Jess is planning to get back into stand-up and penning a kids' book – who'd have thought our Daisy was so dynamic?