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Image: Steve Pemberton as Tubbs.

The League of Gentlemen made its television debut on 11 January 1999. After winning the Perrier Award at the 1997 Edinburgh Festival it was snapped up by Radio 4. Television gave the cast the chance to fully realise their blackly comic vision of life in the strange northern town of Royston Vasey.

The League of Gentlemen are Mark Gatiss, Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith, who play all of the bizarre characters in their world. They wrote the series along with fourth Gentleman, Jeremy Dyson. The tone was set by the town sign seen at the start: "Welcome to Royston Vasey. You'll Never Leave".

In the first episode Benjamin arrives from out of town to stay with relatives Val and Harvey, whose house has very strict rules. His friend runs into trouble in the Local Shop, run by Edward and Tubbs – Pemberton and Shearsmith with piggy noses inspired by Lon Chaney's Phantom of the Opera. At the Job Centre Pauline humiliates her jobseeker charges, including the innocent Mickey. Over The league of Gentlemen's three series many memorable characters appear, including the terrifying Papa Lazarou.

The popularity of The League of Gentlemen has seen it become a feature film and a live show and,in 2017, return to television for two specials. The cast are in constant demand as character actors and have continued to write and perform. Pemberton and Shearsmith make award winning comedy Inside No. 9 and Gatiss is behind hit drama Sherlock.