Tracy Beaker star reprises iconic role for spin-off series – 23 years after making debut
TRACY Beaker leading lady Dani Harmer is making a grand comeback to the role 23 years after first rocketing to fame playing the tearaway child.
The actress, now aged 35, is heading back to where it all began after agreeing to play the character once more.
Dani has been snapped up by the BBC for a one-off guest role in the long-running Beaker spin-off, The Dumping Ground.
The star will reprise the role for one episode when the programme returns for its thirteenth series later this month.
Speaking about portraying the character once again, Dani revealed: “It is so good to be back and making a cameo as Tracy – she’s been a part of my life for over 20 years now – but I’d quite happily play her forever!
“This series of The Dumping Ground will not disappoint, we’ve got some fantastic storylines and some incredibly talented actors joining the cast.”
As well as playing the famous role once again, Dani will be stepping into some new shoes on the show.
She will be making her directorial debut after leading the behind-the-scenes team for one episode of the brand new series.
Speaking about switching to life behind the lens as part of the show that brought her to stardom, the star said: “The production team do such an amazing job nurturing them and they have really supported me behind the camera too, it’s such a special production to be working on.
“I loved being behind the scenes for an episode – it was very different being sat in the director’s chair but I enjoyed every single second of it… it felt like that was where I was meant to be!”
The Dumping Ground was conceived as the second spin-off to the original CBBC kids drama The Story of Tracy Beaker which ran between 2002 and 2006.
Four years later, Dani took on the role once more in Tracy Beaker Returns which saw her character, than aged in her early 20s, begin working at the infamous care home nicknamed The Dumping Ground – marking a major full circle moment for her character.
When Dani opted to quit the role again after three series, the programme was slightly retooled to remain focused on the newer residents of the care home with The Dumping Ground having churned out a series every year ever since.
Whilst Dani hasn’t been seen on the main spin-off since 2012, she did portray the role once again in the 2021 special, My Mum Tracy Beaker.
In the programme, Tracy was mum to Jess and followed her as she navigated a new relationship whilst caring for her school-aged child and reuniting with a number of faces from her past.
The show became CBBC’s biggest launch ever on BBC iPlayer with the first episode being requested 2.1 million times within three days of its premiere.
When the show aired on linear TV, it attained just under 900,000 viewers after seven days.
It was followed by The Beaker Girls show which ran until 2023 and continued the story.
The Dumping Ground series 13 airs Friday 17th January on CBBC and BBC iPlayer.