Danielle Jones (EastEnders)
   HOME

TheInfoList



Click Here for Items Related To - Danielle Jones (EastEnders)
OR:
Danielle Jones (EastEnders) on:   [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Amazon]

Danielle Jones is a fictional character from the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...
''
EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a Television in the United Kingdom, British soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the Ea ...
'', played by
Lauren Crace Lauren Rose Crace (born 25 May 1986) is an English actress and radio presenter, known for her portrayal of Danielle Jones in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'' from 2008 to 2009. Early life The daughter of contemporary writer Jim Crace and Pa ...
. The character appeared between 18 August 2008 and 3 April 2009. Crace's casting in the role was announced in July 2008, when she was described as a
love interest ''Gli Innamorati'' (, meaning "The Lovers") were stock characters within the theatre style known as commedia dell'arte, who appeared in 16th century Italy. In the plays, everything revolved around the Lovers in some regard. These dramatic and pos ...
for fellow new character
Callum Monks The following is a list of characters that first appeared in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'' which aired in 2008 (by order of first appearance). All characters were introduced by executive producer Diederick Santer. Santer introduced four ...
(
Elliott Jordan Elliott Jordan (born 22 April 1983) is an English actor best known for playing Callum Monks in the BBC drama '' EastEnders'' and Jack in the ITV comedy drama '' Benidorm''. Career Jordan started acting at The Sylvia Young Theatre School then ...
). In October 2008, it was revealed that Danielle was actually the long-lost daughter of established character
Ronnie Mitchell Veronica "Ronnie" Branning (also Mitchell) is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera, ''EastEnders'', played by Samantha Womack. She and her younger sister Roxy Mitchell (played by Rita Simons) were introduced by executive producer Died ...
(
Samantha Janus Samantha Zoe Womack (''née'' Janus; born 2 November 1972) is an English actress, singer, model and director who has worked in film, television and stage. Womack initially planned a career in singing and she represented the United Kingdom in ...
). Crace has disclosed that even she was unaware of this fact upon being cast in the role, but always knew Danielle would only have a short arc. Danielle's feelings were further explored in a segment of the BBC ''EastEnders'' homepage entitled Danielle's Diary, documenting the character's thoughts on the storylines she was involved in, while a special episode of ''
EastEnders Revealed ''EastEnders'' is a British soap opera that has aired on BBC One since 19 February 1985. Several spin-off shows have been made, some of which use the narrative of flashbacks to look at the history of the characters such as " CivvyStreet". Others ...
'' entitled "The Secret Mitchell" further explored the character's impact on the show. Danielle played a small but pivotal role in multiple storylines on the show which focused on her friendship with local resident
Stacey Slater Stacey Slater (also Branning and Fowler) is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', portrayed by Lacey Turner. She first appears in episode 2826, originally broadcast on 1 November 2004. The character is introduced as a fe ...
(
Lacey Turner Lacey Amelia Turner (born 28 March 1988) is an English actress. She is known for portraying the role of Stacey Slater on the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'' (2004–2010, 2014–present), for which she has won over thirty awards, including four ...
), her crush on
Callum Monks The following is a list of characters that first appeared in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'' which aired in 2008 (by order of first appearance). All characters were introduced by executive producer Diederick Santer. Santer introduced four ...
(
Elliott Jordan Elliott Jordan (born 22 April 1983) is an English actor best known for playing Callum Monks in the BBC drama '' EastEnders'' and Jack in the ITV comedy drama '' Benidorm''. Career Jordan started acting at The Sylvia Young Theatre School then ...
), her adoption secret and seeking to find answers on her missing mother in Albert Square. She was deemed a welcome addition to the soap by members of the
Telford Telford () is a town in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial county of Shropshire, England, about east of Shrewsbury, south west of Stafford, north west of Wolverhampton and from Birmingham in the same direction. With an est ...
local council, for raising awareness of the town the character originates from, however was poorly received by ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' Gareth McLean and
Grace Dent Grace Dent (born 3 October 1973) is an English columnist, broadcaster and author. She is a restaurant critic for ''The Guardian'' and from 2011 to 2017 wrote a restaurant column for the ''Evening Standard''. She is a regular critic on the BBC' ...
, and dubbed "Drippy Danielle" by the ''
Daily Mirror The ''Daily Mirror'' is a British national daily tabloid. Founded in 1903, it is owned by parent company Reach plc. From 1985 to 1987, and from 1997 to 2002, the title on its masthead was simply ''The Mirror''. It had an average daily print ...
'' Jane Simon. Her final episode was watched by 11.46 million viewers, and caused a notable power surge on the National Grid.


Storylines

Danielle arrives in
Walford Walford is a fictional borough of east London in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders''. It is the primary setting for the soap. ''EastEnders'' is filmed at Borehamwood in Hertfordshire, towards the north-west of London. Much of the location work i ...
, having left her hometown of
Telford Telford () is a town in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial county of Shropshire, England, about east of Shrewsbury, south west of Stafford, north west of Wolverhampton and from Birmingham in the same direction. With an est ...
and is befriended by local resident
Stacey Slater Stacey Slater (also Branning and Fowler) is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', portrayed by Lacey Turner. She first appears in episode 2826, originally broadcast on 1 November 2004. The character is introduced as a fe ...
(
Lacey Turner Lacey Amelia Turner (born 28 March 1988) is an English actress. She is known for portraying the role of Stacey Slater on the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'' (2004–2010, 2014–present), for which she has won over thirty awards, including four ...
), who gives her a job on her market clothing stall and offers her the spare room in her family's home. Danielle quickly develops a crush on fellow stall-trader
Callum Monks The following is a list of characters that first appeared in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'' which aired in 2008 (by order of first appearance). All characters were introduced by executive producer Diederick Santer. Santer introduced four ...
(
Elliott Jordan Elliott Jordan (born 22 April 1983) is an English actor best known for playing Callum Monks in the BBC drama '' EastEnders'' and Jack in the ITV comedy drama '' Benidorm''. Career Jordan started acting at The Sylvia Young Theatre School then ...
), who leads her on in an attempt to make Stacey jealous but he helps her get a second job, cleaning at The Queen Victoria public house, where she gets caught in the feud between the pub's landlord
Archie Mitchell Archibald Lionel "Archie" Mitchell is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by Larry Lamb. He first appeared on 8 July 2008 as a newest member of the Mitchell family—who had first appeared on the soap in 1990 ...
(
Larry Lamb Lawrence Douglas Lamb (born 1 October 1947) is an English actor and radio presenter. He played Archie Mitchell in the BBC soap opera '' EastEnders'', Mick Shipman in the BBC comedy series '' Gavin & Stacey'' and Ted Case in the final series ...
) and his daughter
Ronnie Ronnie may refer to: *Ronnie (name), a unisex pet name and given name * "Ronnie" (Four Seasons song), a song by Bob Gaudio and Bob Crewe *"Ronnie," a song from the Metallica album '' Load'' *Ronnie Brunswijkstadion, an association football stadium ...
(
Samantha Janus Samantha Zoe Womack (''née'' Janus; born 2 November 1972) is an English actress, singer, model and director who has worked in film, television and stage. Womack initially planned a career in singing and she represented the United Kingdom in ...
). Both try to use Danielle to get information from the other, with Archie persuading Danielle to steal Ronnie's post. Ronnie is furious when she realises and sacks Danielle after publicly berating her. Danielle is devastated by this and is later seen clutching a locket containing a photograph of Ronnie, revealing herself to be Ronnie's long-lost daughter, Amy. It soon transpires that Danielle is the result of a teenage romance between Ronnie and her first boyfriend,
Joel Reynolds Joel Reynolds (born 5 June 1984) is a former Australian rules footballer. Reynolds is the grandson of Bomber legend Dick Reynolds Richard Sylvannus Reynolds (20 June 1915 – 2 September 2002) was an Australian rules footballer who pla ...
. Archie disapproved of the pregnancy and put Danielle – named Amy by Ronnie — up for adoption. Danielle was adopted by Lizzie and Andy Jones (
Aneirin Hughes Aneirin Hughes (born Aneurin Hughes, 8 May 1958) is a Welsh actor and singer known for playing Chief Superintendent Brian Prosser in the BBC4 Welsh police drama ''Hinterland''. He won a Best Actor BAFTA Cymru (or BAFTA Wales) for his appearance ...
). She began trying to locate her birth mother after Lizzie's death in 2007. Following Ronnie's tirade, Danielle tries to leave
Albert Square Walford is a fictional borough of east London in the BBC soap opera '' EastEnders''. It is the primary setting for the soap. ''EastEnders'' is filmed at Borehamwood in Hertfordshire, towards the north-west of London. Much of the location ...
, but Stacey and her family persuade her to stay with them. In late 2008, Ronnie's sister Roxy (
Rita Simons Rita Joanne Simons (born 10 March 1977) is an English actress and singer from London. She is best known for playing Roxy Mitchell in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'' from 2007 to 2017, when her character was killed-off, alongside her on screen ...
) gives birth to a baby girl – that she names Amy, in honour of the child Ronnie thought she had lost, to Danielle's surprise. Ronnie grows reluctant of her lessens with time, and when Danielle falls out with Stacey and ends up squatting in a flat owned by next-door neighbour
Ian Beale Ian Beale is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by Adam Woodyatt. He is the drama's longest-serving main character and, following the departure of Pauline Fowler ( Wendy Richard) in 2006, became the only one ...
(
Adam Woodyatt Adam Brinley Woodyatt (born 28 June 1968) is an English actor. He is known for his role as Ian Beale in the BBC soap opera '' EastEnders'', which he played between 1985 and 2022. Early life and education Woodyatt was born on 28 June 1968 in W ...
), Ronnie convinces him not to call the police. Danielle later breaks down and tells Ronnie that she is pregnant by Paul, a barman she had a
one-night stand A one-night stand or one-night sex is a single sexual encounter in which there is an expectation that there shall be no further relations between the sexual participants. It draws its name from the common practice of a one-night stand, a single ...
with. She intended to tell him about her pregnancy until he reveals he has a girlfriend. Ronnie comforts Danielle and contacts Andy, suggesting that he take Danielle home but she resists in favor of staying close to Ronnie. She is dismayed when Ronnie confides in her that having her own child was the biggest mistake of her life. Danielle makes up with Stacey and decides to terminate her pregnancy. She is delighted when Ronnie accompanies her to the clinic but dismayed when she backs out of attending her second appointment. Following her abortion, Danielle visits her family for a while, but soon comes to miss Ronnie and Stacey; she then returns to Walford. Danielle becomes increasingly angry with Ronnie for rejecting her. She decides that she will tell Ronnie who she really is and leave Walford for good but Archie stops her when he learns who she is. Unknown to Danielle, Archie has told Ronnie that her daughter died as an infant; so in order to preserve his story, he convinces Danielle that Ronnie suffers from depression and she should keep quiet until he decides the time is right to make her revelation. Although Danielle continues to press Archie to reveal the truth, he repeatedly puts her off to maintain his lie. Eventually, believing that Archie has told Ronnie about her, Danielle tells her the truth – but Ronnie refuses to believe her. Distraught, Danielle intends to leave Walford but Ronnie discovers that Archie has been lying and chases her. They are about to reconcile when Danielle is run over by a car driven by
Janine Butcher Janine Carter (also Butcher, Evans and Malloy) is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera '' EastEnders'', introduced in 1989. The character was played by Rebecca Michael from 1989 to 1993, Alexia Demetriou from 1993 to 1996, and Charlie ...
(
Charlie Brooks Charlene Emma Brooks (born 3 May 1981) is a British actress. Known for the role of Janine Butcher in the BBC One soap opera ''EastEnders'', she has received numerous awards since her first appearance on the soap in 1999, with storylines inv ...
). A tearful Ronnie cradles Danielle and apologies for not believing her, saying that if she had known, she would never have given her up. Danielle passes away in Ronnie's arms as Roxy and Stacey watch on helpless – leaving Ronnie devastated. Danielle is buried and a grief-stricken Ronnie sings by her grave when alone. In 2016, Danielle's adoptive brother Gareth arrives in Walford – using the alias
Andy Flynn Andy Flynn may refer to: *Andy Flynn (footballer) Andrew Flynn (1895 – ?) was an English professional footballer who played as a full back. He played for Mexborough, Exeter City, York City and Boston Town. Career Born in Sheffield, West ...
(
Jack Derges Jack Derges is a British actor known for portraying the role of Andy Flynn in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders''. Career Derges made his acting debut in the 2007 '' Casualty'' episode "Core Values" as Private Haydon; he returned to the show i ...
). He secretly plots revenge on Ronnie as he believes that she caused Danielle's death. However, when Ronnie discovers his true identity, she tells him that he has not grieved for Danielle properly; he subsequently blames himself, saying he encouraged her to find Ronnie in the first place.


Creation and characterisation

Danielle was created as the long-lost daughter of established character Ronnie Mitchell, and a member of the soap's long-running Mitchell family. Her introduction had been planned from 2007, when story producer
Dominic Treadwell-Collins Dominic Treadwell-Collins (born 26 August 1977) is a British television producer, known for his work on the soap operas ''Family Affairs'' and ''EastEnders'', creating the ''EastEnders'' spin-off series '' Kat & Alfie: Redwater'' and Executive P ...
conceived the idea of two new Mitchell sisters, Ronnie and Roxy. Ronnie was depicted as the more detached and icy sister, and a hidden secret was first alluded to eight months after their introduction, when Roxy made a veiled reference to Ronnie's child and a physical fight ensued. Several months later, off-set episodes shot in Weymouth and dubbed "Mitchell Week" by the BBC were aired, during which the audience were introduced to Ronnie and Roxy's father Archie, and learned that Ronnie had given a child up for adoption. Treadwell-Collins explained that it was necessary to introduce Danielle shortly after this revelation, but in such a manner that she would arrive "under the audience's radar", to preserve the later revelation of her identity as Ronnie's daughter. Lauren Crace, then a third year student at the
Royal Academy of Dramatic Art The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA; ) is a drama school in London, England, that provides vocational conservatoire training for theatre, film, television, and radio. It is based in the Bloomsbury area of Central London, close to the Sen ...
, was cast as Danielle and began filming in June 2008. ''EastEnders'' was Crace's first professional acting role, and executive producer
Diederick Santer Diederick Santer (born 3 July 1969) is a British television producer and is best known for his work on the popular BBC television soap opera ''EastEnders'', a post which he assumed on 23 October 2006 and left on 1 March 2010. He was Chief Exec ...
expressed his pleasure that Crace had chosen to make her debut on the show. Upon her introduction, ''EastEnders'' producers attempted to deceive the audience into believing Danielle was nothing more than a new friend for Stacey. Crace herself was only told of Danielle's true identity after her successful audition, though as she only signed a six-month contract with the show, was always aware Danielle would only have a short arc. She stated that some audience members guessed Danielle to be Ronnie's daughter almost as soon as she arrived, and that she found maintaining the secret difficult. Crace initially portrayed Danielle as being shy and afraid of rejection, though felt that Stacey's friendship and living with the Slater family could have a positive impact on her confidence. Discussing her failure at romantic relationships, Crace assessed that Danielle's eagerness may scare men off. She came to find portraying Danielle depressing, explaining that she was bored by and had doubts about Danielle's constant naivety and passive personality. She suggested to the producers that Danielle should stand up for herself more, which was accepted and adapted into her personality, to the point that by the end of her tenure on the show, Danielle was "not a little mouse any more". Crace's view is that Danielle's Mitchell heritage manifested itself in an inner-strength and ability to "come back fighting", giving her a toughness beneath her "wet and pathetic" personality.


Development

Series writer
Simon Ashdown Simon Ashdown is a British television writer, best known as being a BAFTA award-nominated ''EastEnders'' writer. Career From 1995 to 2013, Ashdown was series consultant and lead writer on ''EastEnders''. He was involved in the creation of the Sl ...
explained that Danielle initially chose to conceal her identity from Ronnie due to her fear of being rejected. He described her as "hurt and broken by her life", and hoping to charm Ronnie into liking her before revealing the truth. Crace observed that Danielle was intrigued by Ronnie and the Mitchells, but also worried that she was too different from them and may be a disappointment to Ronnie. Danielle's pregnancy was used as a plot-device to bring the two closer together. Crace deemed the development "a huge thing" for Danielle, as contrary to her constant rejection, the one person she most desired support from was finally showing her affection. However, Ronnie's failure to attend Danielle's second clinic appointment signified "a step back" for the character, leaving her "hurt and distraught" and less willing to confide the truth in Ronnie than ever. In the aftermath of her abortion, Danielle was depicted as being increasingly emotionally unstable and angry with Ronnie, believing that she deserved to belong to the Mitchell family. The writers had Archie discover her secret as a test of his character, experimenting with whether he would be despicable enough to conceal the truth. Lamb deemed Danielle "a huge threat" to Archie's position as patriarch of the Mitchell family, explaining why he chose to lie that Ronnie was suffering from depression and Danielle ought not tell her. Danielle accepted the lie, believing it to explain Ronnie's "hot and cold" reaction to her, and attempted to care for Ronnie and help her recover. Crace explained that despite their turbulent relationship, Ronnie was all Danielle had ever wanted. Despite seeing Archie as "a domineering figure", Danielle initially trusted him and believed he would reunite her with her mother when the time was right. However, as time passed she became aware of Archie's "true colours" and grew afraid of him. The ultimate revelation of Danielle's identity was set at Archie's wedding to Peggy (
Barbara Windsor Dame Barbara Windsor (born Barbara Ann Deeks; 6 August 193710 December 2020) was an English actress, known for her roles in the ''Carry On'' films and for playing Peggy Mitchell in the BBC One soap opera, ''EastEnders''. and Santer explained: "Weddings are great because they bring the community together. A wedding gives you a stage, it gives you an event, the context to play things out, so it felt right that these big Mitchell stories would collide at Peggy's wedding." Writer James Payne concurred that setting the reveal at the wedding helped to make the moment "as dramatic and sensational" as it could possibly be. The episode saw Danielle announce that she was Ronnie's daughter in front of the entire wedding reception party, in what Crace has named her favourite scene on the show. She opined that the disbelief Danielle was faced with was "heartbreaking" and served to highlight the fact that "she came as the outsider and she still is the outsider because no one steps in to help her". Danielle was killed off minutes after revealing her true identity to Ronnie, dying in her mother's arms. Although different outcomes to the storyline were considered, Santer explained that Danielle dying best preserved Ronnie's status as ''EastEnders'' "tragic heroine character" also known as Kate. Treadwell-Collins felt that to allow Ronnie to have her daughter, the "one thing that is key to her character" would serve to progressively weaken her character, and Santer agreed that while it may initially be touching, ultimately the relationship would become boring. The scene in which Danielle dies was filmed during winter, but as it was set in early April, snow had to be cleared away from the set before filming could commence. A body double was used for the moment Danielle was run over. Although sad to leave, Crace felt that the story's conclusion was the right one, and was glad that Ronnie and Danielle finally shared a brief moment in the end, explaining: "It was so important that that tender moment was finally found, because that's all people wanted. It's all Danielle wanted, and it's all Ronnie wants." Crace concluded: "I think Danielle will leave quite a big mark on the Square and on the people in the Square – probably a bigger mark than she did when she was alive. News of Danielle's death was subject to a media embargo, although several newspapers and magazines including the ''
Radio Times ''Radio Times'' (currently styled as ''RadioTimes'') is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in May 1923 by J ...
'' leaked news of Crace's exit in advance of the event.
Digital Spy Digital Spy (DS) is a British-based entertainment, television and film website and brand and is the largest digital property at Hearst UK. Since its launch in 1999, Digital Spy has focused on entertainment news related to television programmes, ...
's Kris Green reported that most of the online ''EastEnders'' community had anticipated the character's exit from the soap beforehand, some as early as January 2009.


Related media

The BBC used viral promotion on the ''EastEnders'' homepage to further develop the character of Danielle. A new section named Danielle's Diary was launched, encompassing events in the show from 6 October 2008 onwards, written in diary style from Danielle's point of view. Insight was given into the character's thoughts and feelings on the events surrounding her each week, beginning with the introduction: "Bit new to all this. Need some way to clear my head though. Can't really talk to Stace. Or Callum. Or anyone. Maybe if I write it all down, my head won't explode... Anyway, welcome to my life in Walford." In this manner, viewers were able to keep up with the character during her temporary absence from the show in February 2009, when she returned home to Telford following her abortion: "Back in
Dawley Dawley ( ) is a constituent town and civil parish in Telford and Wrekin in Shropshire, England. It was originally, in 1963, going to be the main centre of the 'Dawley New Town' plan before it was decided in 1968 to name the new town as 'Telford ...
. Feels strange to be away from Stacey... away from R&R... away from Ronnie. Been sleeping a lot – so tired. When I was younger I never dreamt that I’d go through all of this. Stace keeps ringing, but I can’t speak to anyone. I can’t even listen to my voicemail", and were privy to Danielle's internal worries about her relationship with Ronnie: "It's like I scare R. It was as though she scared herself, as she actually admitted that she cared. For about ten seconds I felt close to her again. Like watching the sun appear from behind a cloud... feeling the warmth across your skin again. But, then it disappears as another cloud sweeps over it." The final entry, dated minutes before Danielle's on-screen death, reads: "All I ever wanted was for mum to look at me with love in her eyes. To call me her baby. To tell me she loved me. I have to leave now. I have to go back to Telford. Goodbye Walford." After the character had been killed off, the diary format gave way to a wall of memorial messages, supposedly penned by other ''EastEnders'' characters, including
Abi Branning Abi Branning is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera '' EastEnders'', played by Lorna Fitzgerald. She was introduced by executive producer Kate Harwood on 3 July 2006 as an extension to the Branning family, along with father Max (J ...
(
Lorna Fitzgerald Lorna Katie Fitzgerald (born 17 April 1996) is a British actress from Northampton. Her most notable role to date is that of Abi Branning in the BBC soap opera, '' EastEnders''. Since leaving ''EastEnders'' in January 2018, Fitzgerald has develo ...
),
Lucy Beale Lucy Beale is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders''. The character was played by Eva Brittin-Snell (from 1993 to 1996), Casey Anne Rothery (from 1996 until 2004), Melissa Suffield (from 2004 to 2010), and Hetti Bywater ...
(
Melissa Suffield Melissa Holly Suffield (born 24 December 1992) is a former English actress from London, best known for her role in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'' as Lucy Beale. Her first appearance on the show was 28 October 2004, and her last was on 27 Au ...
), Callum and Stacey.


Reception

Miles Hosken, a former mayor of
Telford Telford () is a town in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial county of Shropshire, England, about east of Shrewsbury, south west of Stafford, north west of Wolverhampton and from Birmingham in the same direction. With an est ...
, welcomed the choice to give Danielle a Telford background due to the national exposure it gave the area. Sarah Raper, chief executive of economic development company Transforming Telford, commented: "We hope the new character will portray Telford in a positive light and increase national awareness of the town", and Councillor Eric Carter, Telford & Wrekin Council cabinet member for regeneration, adding: "There are a lot of people working to put Telford on the map and this will help". The ''
Daily Mirror The ''Daily Mirror'' is a British national daily tabloid. Founded in 1903, it is owned by parent company Reach plc. From 1985 to 1987, and from 1997 to 2002, the title on its masthead was simply ''The Mirror''. It had an average daily print ...
'' sympathised with Danielle over the storyline which saw her manipulated by Archie, deeming it one of the more interesting ''EastEnders'' plot strands. Gareth McLean of ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' described Danielle as a "wet weekend incarnate", criticising the drawn out nature of the secret Mitchell storyline. Fellow ''Guardian'' critic
Grace Dent Grace Dent (born 3 October 1973) is an English columnist, broadcaster and author. She is a restaurant critic for ''The Guardian'' and from 2011 to 2017 wrote a restaurant column for the ''Evening Standard''. She is a regular critic on the BBC' ...
was similarly critical of the storyline, particularly the scripting. The ''Daily Mirror'' Tony Stewart wrote that "when a downcast Danielle walks into a room, it's like all the lights have been switched off", and his colleague Jane Simon christened the character "Drippy Danielle", writing that "If she's half Mitchell, her father must have been a marshmallow." Discussing the character's death, Digital Spy's Kris Green praised Crace's acting. He compared Danielle's revelation that Ronnie was her mother to the ''EastEnders'' storyline several years previously, when
Kat Slater Kathleen "Kat" Slater (also Moon) is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by Jessie Wallace. She is also played by Kate Peck in a flashback in 2001 and Sumar-Elise Sandford in a flashback in 2018. Kat is the sec ...
(
Jessie Wallace Karen Jane Wallace (born 25 September 1971), known professionally as Jessie Wallace, is an English actress. She is known for portraying the role of Kat Slater on the BBC soap opera '' EastEnders'' since 2000. Her role as Kat won her the Natio ...
) revealed she was actually the mother of her supposed sister Zoe (
Michelle Ryan Michelle Claire Ryan (born 22 April 1984) is an English actress. She played Zoe Slater on the BBC soap opera '' EastEnders'' (2000–2005). In 2007, she starred in the short-lived American television series ''Bionic Woman''. She appeared as th ...
). Green opined: "Although it didn't quite capture the magic of
he Kat-Zoe scene He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' in ...
it definitely comes an ''extremely'' close second." He concluded: "I'd probably go as far as to say that it's one of the best episodes ''EastEnders'' has produced in a long time". The episode was selected as recommended viewing by ''The Guardian'' Sarah Dempster. Simon called it "the ''EastEnders'' episode of the year", though was again critical of Danielle, writing: "As a nation we've been driven mad by Danielle screwing up her forehead, shrugging her shoulders and walking around like a wide eyed simpleton. She isn't the first person in the world to track down their biological mother and while it's seldom easy, I can't imagine it's ever been quite so hard as Danielle has made it." Writing for ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'', Tim Teeman was critical of the length of time it took for the storyline to conclude, calling it "the most drawn-out 'reveal' in soapland". He deemed Ashdown's scripting of Danielle's exit to be "mad crescendo after mad crescendo", and the storyline as a whole "implausible", concluding that by the time Danielle died in Ronnie's arms: "''EastEnders'' had hit the misery mother lode." Crace was pleased with public reaction to the mother-daughter storyline, commenting prior to the reveal: "Everyone seems desperate to know why Danielle hasn't told Ronnie yet, so I'm taking that as a sign they're enjoying the story. Viewers are always telling me that they love it when Danielle and Ronnie have a scene together – I think they're on the edge of their seats, waiting to see when Danielle is finally going to admit the truth about her identity." Danielle's death received a mixed reaction from viewers. The decision was defended by Santer, who stated: "We acknowledge that we didn't deliver the happy ending that many of the audience may have been hoping for, and that for some people this was upsetting. We hope viewers understand that our aim is to deliver the best drama. That doesn't always lead to a happy ending. ''EastEnders'' – like all good drama – contains a balance of storylines, both happy and sad. We’re proud of the episode, the storyline which built up to it and the way the audience have engaged with it." Following Danielle's final episode, regulator
Ofcom The Office of Communications, commonly known as Ofcom, is the government-approved regulatory and competition authority for the broadcasting, telecommunications and postal industries of the United Kingdom. Ofcom has wide-ranging powers acros ...
confirmed they had received a number of complaints from the public about the "violent nature of the show and the horrific death at the end", and the fact it was broadcast before the 9 p.m. watershed. Danielle's final episode was watched by an average of 11.46 million viewers, and attaining a 48.3% audience share. A further 1.2 million viewers watched the episode's repeat on
BBC Three BBC Three is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was first launched on 9 February 2003 with programmes targeting 16 to 34-year-olds, covering all genres including animation, comedy, curre ...
later that evening. The high ratings caused a power surge more than double the national average, seeing a grid surge of 1270MW compared to the 550MW usually experienced during ''EastEnders'' episodes. A National Grid spokeswoman commented that the surge was "equivalent to around half a million kettles being switched on at once."


See also

*
List of EastEnders characters (2008) The following is a list of characters that first appeared in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'' which aired in 2008 (by order of first appearance). All characters were introduced by executive producer Diederick Santer. Santer introduced four ...
* The Secret Mitchell


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Danielle EastEnders characters Adoptee characters in television Television characters introduced in 2008 Fictional salespeople Female characters in television Fictional market stallholders