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Alexander Armstrong

Alexander Armstrong plays local MP Patrick Yam, who appears in episode one, and suddenly starts attending church when a rumour circulates that Ellie's school is about to receive a good Ofsted report.

Eager to put himself ahead of the pack of other pushy parents vying for church school places, Patrick makes Adam a tempting offer.

Alexander studied at Trinity College, Cambridge, and was a member of the college choir. In 1992, he met Ben Miller, who was also in the Cambridge Footlights, and they formed the comedy duo Armstrong & Miller. He decided not to pursue his career as a professional singer and turned to acting instead.

Alexander's feature film appearances include Woody Allen's Match Point; Churchill – The Hollywood Years; Birthday Girl; and Plunkett & Macleane.

Television credits include four series of Armstrong & Miller for Channel 4; starring as a misanthropic animal-hating vet in two series of sitcom Beast; ´óÏó´«Ã½ comedy drama Mutual Friends; and co-starring with Caroline Quentin in Life Begins. He also appeared in the satirical fictional documentary The Trial Of Tony Blair, as David Cameron.

Alexander is also chairman of the comedy panel show Best Of The Worst; presents the ITV1 comedy quiz series Don't Call Me Stupid; and is a frequent guest host of Have I Got News for You. Upcoming work includes the third series of Bafta-nominated The Armstrong & Miller Show for ´óÏó´«Ã½ One.

Darren Boyd

When Adam is struggling to increase the size of his congregation, possible salvation seems to come in the form of fellow vicar Darren Betts, played by Darren Boyd, who appears in episode two.

The handsome evangelical has a hypnotic gaze, religious certainty, money and a crowd of young shiny worshippers. But Adam soon comes to regret offering the use of his church to Darren.

Darren Boyd starred in the ´óÏó´«Ã½ drama Royal Wedding and also recently appeared in the feature film Four Lions.

Other television credits include Smack The Pony, which won the international Emmy for Best Popular Arts Programme. Darren then went on to collaborate with Victoria Pile, the creator of Smack The Pony, to co-create, co-write and star in Los Dos Bros, which won a Silver Rose for Best Sitcom at Montreux.

He has appeared in the NBC ensemble comedy Watching Ellie, produced by and starring Julia Louis-Dreyfus. Further television credits include Greenwing, Saxondale, Little Dorrit and Canadian comedy The Jane Show.

Darren's other feature film appearances include High Heels And Low Lives; Imagine Me And You; and Magicians.

Hugh Bonneville

Adam went to theological college with Roland Wise, played by Hugh Bonneville, who appears in episode four, but, to his chagrin, his former peer is now a church star.

Hugely popular in the church – even with the hard-to-please Archdeacon – Roland is charming, fluent in several languages and is a regular on Thought For The Day, Question Time and Have I Got News for You.

To Adam's humiliation, the Archdeacon insists that he consults his old rival for media training.

Hugh Bonneville has become a familiar face to television audiences with leading roles in Take A Girl Like You; Armadillo; Daniel Deronda; and The Commander. He appeared in the Emmy award-winning The Gathering Storm and played the poet Philip Larkin in Love Again.

More recent credits range from comedies The Vicar Of Dibley and Freezing, which, like Rev, was written by James Wood, to hard-hitting dramas such as Tsunami – The Aftermath.

He has appeared in Miss Austen Regrets, Filth – The Mary Whitehouse Story, Bonekickers and Lost In Austen.

Colin Salmon

Tired of feeling excluded and derided by the rest of society, Adam is thrilled to meet Leon, played by Colin Salmon, who's keen to get married at St Saviour's.

Leon, who appears in episode five, sees past the dog collar and a friendship develops with the pair sharing pints in the local pub and even jogging together. But the bromance comes to a crashing halt when Adam discovers that Leon went to college with Alex – and that they have "history".

Colin Salmon played the recurring role of MI6 agent Charles Robinson in the James Bond films Tomorrow Never Dies, The World Is Not Enough and Die Another Day. Other feature appearances include Devil's Playground, Shank, Alien vs Predator, The Bank Job and Woody Allen's Match Point.

Colin made his television debut in the hit mini-series Prime Suspect. Other television credits include Party Animals; Bad Girls; Doctor Who; The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency; and Law & Order UK.

Stage work includes The Indian Boy at the RSC, Becket/The Honour Of God at Southwark Playhouse and After Darwin at Hampstead Theatre.