Ricky Gervais and James Corden have a lot of similarities - but they certainly don't get on.
The pair would seem like ideal candidates to be pals, considering they are both British comedians who wrote ionic TV shows then found success in America.
Ricky is of course known for writing and starring in The Office, while James co-wrote Gavin & Stacey and became famous in the role of Smithy.
It took Ricky over a decade to get his big break with The Office and Extras, before some questionable film roles in box office flops Ghost Town and The Invention of Lying.
While James, who appeared in Fat Friends, had a more meteoric rise to fame at a much younger age when he landed his presenting gig on The Late Late Show.
The pair have become well known for trading nasty insults with each other - but the first swipe took place in James' short-lived comedy show Horne and Corden.
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During one sketch in their BBC 3 series back in 2009, James depicted Ricky as a bumbling fool who was struggling to find any work.
Corden poked fun at the David Brent character in a scene in the trenches during World War I, then in another he mocked the famous dance.
Matt Horne, who created the show with James and starred as Gavin in Gavin & Stacey, revealed he had he had to pull James up for acting too much like Ricky during an episode of Never Mind the Buzzcocks.
James and Ricky then became almost direct rivals as they were both on hosting duties at major awards shows.
Gervais offended virtually the whole of Hollywood when he fronted the Golden Globes in 2011, but James said there wouldn't be as many bad-taste jokes when he hosted the Brit Awards that year.
"I’m not going to go down the Ricky Gervais road because, well, you can’t in that room, anyway – there’s a big difference between the O2 and the dining room in the Beverly Hilton," Corden told The Mirror.
"Basically, I want to host the Brits with as much warmth and sensitivity as possible. Fewer gags.
"Mostly I’ve been following guidance from the producers. They’re encouraging a positive, upbeat, interesting show as opposed to anything particularly risque."
However, James did actually stick up for Ricky later in the year and told the haters to back off.
"People should keep their hands off him," said James. "If I only managed to do half of what he has done I will consider myself a success."
But there was clearly tension between the pair and Ricky started to criticse James for some of his jokes, including a controversial one he made about Harvey Weinstein.
"It’s a beautiful night here in L.A," James said at the annual amfAR charity dinner in Hollywood in 2017, at the height of the #MeToo scandal emerging.
"So beautiful, Harvey Weinstein has already asked tonight up to his hotel to give him a massage."
Ricky is known for often going close to the line, but he had something to say about Corden's tasteless gag during an interview on Radio Andy.
"When you do a contentious joke or talk about a taboo subject, it’s got to be a great joke," he said.
"You can’t just bounce out there and do jokes about abuse and rape. You’ve got to be very intelligent when you do it. There’s got to be a point to it.
"He did it like it was light entertainment. He didn’t do it well enough."
The most outrageous insult came when Ricky hosted the Golden Globes again in 2020 and referred to James as in some rather unsavoury terms.
He had the audience in stitches by joking: "The world got to see James Corden as a fat p****. He was also in the movie Cats, but no one saw that."
When hit by claims he was obessed with Corden after the personal attacks, Gervais denied there was any resentment.
"There is no feud between myself and James nor has there ever been," stated Ricky to The Sun.
"The Cats joke that I told at the Golden Globes is obviously a pun on his role in the film, and James‘ impression of me in his sketch show was also friendly teasing, and I took no offence to that."
Ricky has even included a joke about James during his hit Netflix series After Life - in one scene where a character was writing her fantasy dinner party guest list.
When Kath mentions Corden and says "that man can do anything", Ricky's character replies: "And does."
Kath then says the comedian is always working, and gets back the response: "As a chauffeur, mainly".
It's obviously a clear reference to James' very successful carpool karaoke skit, where he gets celebs to sing their songs in his car.
In a recent interview, Gervais denied targeting Corden for a reason and said he has "nothing against" the celebs he makes jokes about.
"James did an impression of me in his show, I didn’t take it personally, it’s just fun," he told the Press Association.
"I’ve got no animosity. People will think that though, but as long as they (the subjects) don’t, that’s all I care about."
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