> Celia Johnson, who played Joanna, was born in 1908 in Surrey, England, to a medical family; her father was the physician of the Duke and Duchess of York, who later became King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, the parents of the current Queen Elizabeth of England. Johnson made her feature film debut in Noël Coward's war-time drama, In Which We Serve (1942), and became one of the most respected actresses in British cinema of the 1940s and 1950s, in films like This Happy Breed (1944) and the Christmas classic The Holly and the Ivy (1952). Her sensitive portrayal of a married woman in love with another man in Brief Encounter (1945) earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress.

> Johnson was primarily a star in the British theater, and was given the title of Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for her "services to drama" in 1958. In 1981, she was advanced to Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE), making her "Dame Celia Johnson." She was married for thirty-six years to travel writer Peter Fleming, the older brother of Ian Fleming, the author of the James Bond series. Celia Johnson passed away in 1982 at the age of 73.

> Joe Robinson, who played Sam Heppner, was born in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England in 1927, and came from a family of champion wrestlers - both his father, Joseph, Sr. and his grandfather, John Robinson, had been World Champions. As "Tiger Joe Robinson," he won the European Heavyweight Championship in 1952. After a back injury, he turned to acting, appearing in films and in musicals in London. While studying at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts, he met director Carol Reed, who cast him in A Kid for Two Farthings. Robinson's best known role, as Peter Franks, the diamond smuggler who battles Sean Connery in the James Bond film Diamonds are Forever (1971), was also his last in 37 films.

> Jonathan Ashmore, who played six-year-old Joe, was born in 1948, the son of actress Rosalie Crutchley. A Kid for Two Farthings was his only film. He is now the Bernard Katz Professor of Biophysics at University College London.

> Diana Dors, who played Sonia, was born Diana Fluck in 1931 in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. She started her career as a child actress in British films, but soon grew up to be a beautiful blonde bombshell. Because of her looks, she was billed as the British answer to Marilyn Monroe, although she never had the same success in the United States.

> Dors was married several times, including once to Richard Dawson, who was an actor on the television show Hogan's Heroes and who later became the host of the game show Family Feud. Dors' career continued as she grew older and she moved into more mature roles before her death in 1984.