This year, MASTERPIECE is marking 50 years of dazzling British television. To commemorate the royal occasion, the GBH Drama Club is celebrating some of our favorite stars who went on to leave a big mark on the world of TV and film. While MASTERPIECE fans know some of these thespians well, there are some others we think you should keep your eyes on.

John Neville

We had to give a shoutout to The First Churchills, the first-ever program shown on MASTERPIECE in the US back in 1971 — 50 years ago. John Neville starred as John Churchill, the first Duke of Marlborough, a direct ancestor of Winston Churchill. Before appearing on TV, Neville had a well-established theater career in London, having portrayed some of Shakespeare’s most iconic roles like Romeo, King Richard II and Othello. Later in his career, he portrayed Sherlock Holmes a few times, had a lead role in 1988’s The Adventures of Baron Munchausen and had a recurring role on the TV show The X-Files.

Maggie Smith

Many Americans likely think of Professor McGonagall when they see Maggie Smith on screen, thanks to her enchanting portrayal of the stern magical instructor in all eight of the Harry Potter movies. But Smith’s magical talents have made her British acting royalty, with a storied career on stage and screen. She won Academy Awards for her roles in 1969’s The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie and 1978’s California Suite. She was, of course, the best part of Downton Abbey, playing the Dowager Countess of Grantham, a role which won her three Emmys and a Golden Globe. Before that, she also starred in the MASTERPIECE miniseries David Copperfield in 1999 with future Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe.

Sanjeev Bhaskar

MASTERPIECE fans know Bhaskar well as detective Sunny Khan in the modern crime drama Unforgotten, in which he solves murder cases that have gone cold. But Bhaskar is also a talented comedic actor, known for the BBC sketch comedy show Goodness Gracious Me, which examined the intersection of British and South Asian culture. He also starred in the sitcom The Kumars at No. 42 and produced India with Sanjeev Bhaskar, a documentary about his family’s ancestral journey from India to England. His cultural contributions were officially recognized in 2006 when he was named an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire.

Daniel Radcliffe

Before he portrayed the most famous wizard of all time, Daniel Radcliffe made his acting debut in David Copperfield in 1999 alongside Maggie Smith. The two-part BBC miniseries was an adaptation of the 1850 Charles Dickens novel and Radcliffe played the young version of the titular character. A year later he was cast in Harry Potter and became a household name. Since retiring from magic, he has been been seen in independent and offbeat films like 2013’s Kill Your Darlings, 2015’s Victor Frankenstein and 2016’s Swiss Army Man.

Judi Dench

Dame Judi Dench’s combination of grace and talent have made her one of Britain’s most celebrated actors working today, and over the course of her decades-long career she has been nominated for seven Oscars, won one, and has also won a Tony, two Golden Globes and four BAFTAs. She has played iconic roles like Lady MacBeth and Queen Elizabeth and M in the James Bond franchise, a role she was in for 20 years. MASTERPIECE fans know her from Cranford, the wonderful series about a group of women getting into mischievous trouble in rural 19th century England.

Imelda Staunton

Imelda Staunton has had a legendary career on screen and stage. For her role in 2004’s Vera Drake, she won a BAFTA and was nominated for an Academy Award and Golden Globe award. Harry Potter fans know her as the dreadful Professor Umbridge. In addition to David Copperfield, she has also starred in MASTERPIECE’s Cranford, Return to Cranford, 1989’s The Heat of the Day, 1993’s Much Ado About Nothing, and 2005’s My Family and Other Animals. MASTERPIECE is a family affair — she is married to Downton Abbey’s Jim Carter, whom she met while performing together in a production of Guys and Dolls. Their daughter Bessie Carter has appeared in Beecham House and Howards End.

David Oyelowo

Before he came to MASTERPIECE as Javert in the 2018 miniseries Les Misérables, David Oyelowo was already making history. When he took the stage in 2001 as King Henry VI in a Royal Shakespeare Company’s trilogy, he became the first Black actor to play the king in a major Shakespeare production. From the stage he moved to the small screen and starred as Danny Hunter, an MI5 officer in Spooks from 2002 to 2004. Although he’s British, he has brought critical American figures and stories to the big screen, including his appearance in Lee Daniels' The Butler in 2013 and in his portrayal of Martin Luther King Jr. in 2014’s Selma.

Michael Gambon

Yet another Harry Potter star: this time, it’s Michael Gambon, who embodied the role of Albus Dumbledore for six of the series’ films. The Tony Award winner has also had an eclectic career on screen, appearing in films like 2001’s Gosford Park, 2010’s The King's Speech and Wes Anderson films like 2009’s Fantastic Mr. Fox. His contributions were officially recognized when he was knighted by Prince Charles in 1998. We love him for his starring roles in the 1999 MASTERPIECE miniseries Wives and Daughters, 2007’s Cranford, his titular role in 2016’s Churchill's Secret, and the 2017 miniseries Little Women.

Peter O’Toole

With piercing blue eyes and movie star good looks, Peter O’Toole became a global star when he first appeared in vivid color in the desert in Lawrence of Arabia in 1962. That led to his first Academy Award nomination, and he would go on to be nominated seven more times for roles including King Henry II in 1964’s Becket and most recently for 2006’s Venus. O'Toole first came to MASTERPIECE when he starred in the 1996 film Heavy Weather.

Colin Firth

Colin Firth made drama fans swoon with his turn as Mr. Darcy in the 1995 adaptation of Pride and Prejudice, thanks to a certain wet shirt scene. That iconic portrayal elevated Firth’s star status and led him to a series of critically acclaimed roles, including 2011’s Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, 1998’s Shakespeare in Love, 1996’s The English Patient and 2001’s Bridget Jones’ Diary. He was nominated for an Oscar for 2009’s A Single Man and won one for his portrayal of King George VI in 2010’s The King’s Speech. In 1999, he starred in MASTERPIECE's The Turn of the Screw.

Eamonn Walker

Speaking of Shakespeare, we had to include Eamonn Walker, who played Othello in the 2002 MASTERPIECE film. Written by Andrew Davies, it was a modern interpretation of the classic Shakespeare play, set in the 21st century amid racial tension in the London Metropolitan Police. Walker has also made a splash in the HBO prison drama Oz and as a fire chief in Chicago Fire.

Helen Mirren

Helen Mirren is another British acting legend who has dabbled in royalty. She is one of very few actors to win the so-called Triple Crown of Acting, having won an Academy Award for her role as Queen Elizabeth II in The Queen, a Tony Award for that same role in The Audience, and also four Emmy Awards throughout her legendary career. She has also been nominated for Oscars for 1994’s The Madness of King George, 2001’s Gosford Park and 2009’s The Last Station. From 1991 to 2006, she played the pioneering detective Jane Tennison, on MASTERPIECE’s Prime Suspect, for which she was nominated for three BAFTA awards. To top it all off, she was officially made a dame at Buckingham Palace in 2003.

Diana Rigg

Dame Diana Rigg passed away last year, but she is still on our screens, appearing as Mrs. Pumphrey in All Creatures Great and Small. Before that, she had a long history with MASTERPIECE, having hosted Mystery! from 1989 to 2003 and appeared in 1985’s Bleak House, Victoria in 2019, and Rebecca in 1997, which earned her an Emmy award. She won a Tony Award in 1994 for her stage role in Medea and she has appeared in some of film and TV’s most iconic franchises, including the James Bond film On Her Majesty's Secret Service in 1969, and recently as the memorable Olenna Tyrell on Game of Thrones.

Tamara Lawrence

To round out our list, we are celebrating Tamara Lawrence, currently starring on the MASTERPIECE miniseries The Long Song, an adaptation of Andrea Levy’s novel about 19th-century Jamaica. Lawrence plays a young slave who tells her own story about the end of slavery in the country. She’s not new to MASTERPIECE, having appeared in King Charles III in 2017 as Prince Harry’s girlfriend. She’s also had some distinguished roles on stage, including in theater productions of Ma Rainey's Black Bottom and Viola in Twelfth Night.

Who are your favorite MASTERPIECE stars? Let us know!