List of Extras characters

Andy's dream to become an actor – he left his steady day job at NatWest in Wokingham in order to pursue it – is endlessly thwarted by the fact that his agent Darren Lamb is incompetent, circumstances seem to conspire against him, and the only work he can get is as a film extra.

His best friend is fellow extra Maggie Jacobs, but her staunch desire to help, coupled with a lack of tact and intelligence, means that she more often than not causes him just as much trouble.

This may be due to his increased sense of self-awareness and respect; when compared to Brent, Millman is fully aware of when he has stepped over the line and become genuinely offensive.

[1] A running joke is that Millman did not lose his virginity until the age of 28 (although the first time this is mentioned, Maggie says he was 22), and to a woman who looked like Ronnie Corbett (who turns up in a later episode as himself).

Andy's nemesis throughout the programme is Greg Lindley-Jones, who also started out as an extra, but on heavy financial support from his parents, before finding success in a number of productions and becoming a well-respected actor.

Although Maggie possesses no malicious intent, she also appears to be rather ignorant and poorly educated when it comes to matters of race and political correctness – which, when coupled with her general outspokenness, frequently results in her causing genuine offence through inadvertent insults and stereotypes.

However, owing to circumstance and her aforementioned tendency to commit social faux pas, the relationships she starts with men throughout the series rarely last long.

He is utterly incapable of breaking an act, and his usual negotiating tactic is to simply agree with whatever anyone else says, or suggest someone other than his client for the part.

His lack of professional skills is typified by the occasion he inadvertently left his office phone unplugged for two days without noticing.

In episode six of the second series, an increasingly stressed Millman threatens to sack Lamb after he is caught masturbating and relaxing in his office.

Lamb does not have a regular girlfriend and his rather crude way of chatting up women (as seen in episode two of series two) means few have any wish to fulfil his sexual desires.

He used to play Barry Evans on the British soap opera EastEnders, but left to pursue a multi-million pound contract elsewhere and failed.

Greg is notably annoyed when Andy tries to celebrate his BBC series triumph with fellow extras in Season 1 Episode 6.

Andy becomes envious of the fact Greg is now a well-respected Hollywood actor whilst he is only recognised for featuring in a lowbrow sitcom.

Many of Ray's mannerisms, such as raising and lowering his glasses, suggest that he could be a parody of Reg Holdsworth, an old character from the long-running British soap Coronation Street.

Brains, played by Jamie Chapman, is the stereotypical smart one of the group, sporting glasses, a quiff hairstyle and a pedantic tone.