Danniella Westbrook

Danniella Westbrook (born 5 November 1973) is an English actress and television presenter. She is known for being the original actress to play Samantha Mitchell in the popular BBC soap opera EastEnders in 1990–93, 1995–96, 1999–2000 and 2009–10. Away from EastEnders she has presented various shows, and was also a contestant on ITV's I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! in 2003.[2]  She competed in the 2010 series of Dancing on Ice with US Pairs Skater Matthew Gonzalez and finished fourth in the competition. In 2012 it was announced she would be joining the cast of Hollyoaks.

Westbrook is also known for a much publicised cocaine addiction throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, which caused the complete erosion of her nasal septum/columella. She sought treatment and no longer uses drugs. She is married with two children, and has released two volumes of autobiography, The Other Side of Nowhere, in 2006 and Faith, Hope and Clarity in 2013.



Contents
[hide]  *1 Early life  ==Early life[ edit] == Westbrook was born in Walthamstow, London, but grew up in Loughton, Essex.[3]  Her father Andy was a cab driver, and later a carpet contractor, while her mother, Sue, was a shop assistant. Her parents were also successful property developers. Westbrook has two brothers, the eldest, Justin—her father's son from a prior marriage—and a younger brother, Jay, who is 8 years her junior. She has commented "I came from a very loving family - you know, 2.4 children with a Volvo".[3]
 * 2 Career
 * 2.1 Early career
 * 2.2 EastEnders
 * 2.3 Other work
 * 2.4 Filmography: Television
 * 3 Personal life
 * 3.1 Drug addiction
 * 3.2 Relationships and family
 * 4 Notes
 * 5 External links

As a child, she had a keen interest in horse riding, but she has said that she has always had aspirations to be famous.[4]  She started off modelling at the age of seven and then progressed to acting. She joined theSylvia Young Theatre School when she was eight, attending Saturday classes. Throughout the early stages of her career, Westbrook attended a local state primary school, but she was bullied because of her television appearances, and after one bully cut off her hair, Westbrook's parents removed her from the school. She was sent to a local private school, until, at the age of 12, her parents allowed her to attend Sylvia Young Theatre School as a full-time student, where Denise Van Outen, Dani Behr and her future EastEnders co-star, Nicola Stapleton, were among her contemporaries.[3] [5] ==Career<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] == ===Early career<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === <p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:22.399999618530273px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">Westbrook started off modelling at the age of seven for the supermarket Asda.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-biog_4-1" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[4]  She went on to launch Next's children's fashionware, became the face of highstreet store "Tammy Girl", took part in a Weetabixcampaign and featured in advertisements for Opel cars and Coca Cola.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-biog_4-2" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[4]  Later she did modelling alongside her younger brother Jay.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-biog_4-3" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[4]  She progressed into acting, appearing as a child thief in Melvyn Bragg'sLondon Programme and the West End production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-biog_4-4" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[4]  She appeared in a video for the band Queen and had a minor role in Grange Hill. At the age of eleven she appeared as an extra in BBC's EastEnders, roller skating across the soap's setting of Albert Square. At the time her local paper published her picture with the punchline "who knows, one day she may be the show's star!".<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-EEHandbook_6-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[6] ===EastEnders<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === <p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:22.399999618530273px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">At the age of 16, Westbrook was put forward for a much bigger role in EastEnders, Sam Mitchell (the younger sister of Phil and Grant). Her audition was successful and she made her first appearance on the soap opera in 1990.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-guardian_3-3" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[3]  Despite featuring in some prominent storylines, Westbrook decided to leave the soap in 1993 to take another role.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-autogenerated3_7-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[7]  In 1995, the producers at EastEnders asked her back to the soap a second time. However, Westbrook was regularly using cocaine and it began to affect her work.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-biog_4-5" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[4]  Due to her off-screen antics and her poor and tardy attendance on set, the producers of EastEnders terminated her contract and she was written out of the soap again in 1996.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-biog_4-6" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[4] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-autogenerated2_8-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[8]

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.399999618530273px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">In 1999, EastEnders' producers decided to reintroduce the character of Sam Mitchell.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-biog_4-7" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[4]  Although they initially considered recasting the role to another actress, and despite all her past problems, they decided to give Danniella another chance and she was asked back for a third time.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-biog_4-8" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[4]  During her time away, Daniella's excessive use of cocaine had completely eroded away her nasal septum.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-biog_4-9" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[4]  In order to hide this from the audience, Danniella was only filmed in ways that would keep her septum hidden from view.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-biog_4-10" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[4]  However, Daniella's drug taking continued and in 2000, she was asked to leave EastEnders again.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-biog_4-11" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[4] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-autogenerated2_8-1" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[8]  In 2001, the character of Sam Mitchell was reintroduced again, but producers decided to recast; Kim Medcalf became the second actress to play Sam Mitchell, appearing from January 2002 until late 2005.

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.399999618530273px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">In April 2009, the media confirmed that EastEnders' bosses were reintroducing the character of Sam Mitchell, and that Daniella Westbrook would be reprising the role, not Kim Medcalf.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-return_2-1" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[2] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-9" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[9]  Producers reportedly opted for Westbrook to return over Medcalf because of her established on-screen chemistry with actors Sid Owen (who played Sam's former husband Ricky Butcher in the 1990s) and Patsy Palmer (who played Ricky's second wife Bianca Jackson).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-10" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[10]  Westbrook returned to screens in September 2009 for two temporary stints, departing once again on 21 September 2010. ===Other work<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === <p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:22.399999618530273px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">A week after her initial exit from EastEnders, in 1993, Westbrook landed the part of Dawn in ITV's Frank Stubbs Promotes, which had a second series in 1994. She also played a part in Dave Stewart's directional film debut, Entertaining Mr. Simpson. The film was shown at various film festivals around the world, including Cannes.

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.399999618530273px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">In 2003, Westbrook was a contestant in the British ITV reality series ''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I%27m_a_Celebrity..._Get_Me_Out_of_Here! I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!]''. Despite being a popular candidate for winning, she found the environment traumatic, saying that she missed her children and wasn't psychologically prepared for the hardship of jungle life. She quit the show before being voted off.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-11" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[11]

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.399999618530273px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">In 2006, Westbrook appeared on a reality TV special of The Weakest Link where she lost in the head-to-head final round. Still, she won £5,025 after Martin Offiah decided to split the winnings, which were donated to charity.

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.399999618530273px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">Westbrook was reportedly offered the role of Natalie Buxton in the ITV prison series Bad Girls, but she declined because of her nose rebuilding operation.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-guardian_3-4" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[3] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-12" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[12]  Dannielle Brent went on to play Natalie Buxton. Westbrook also turned down a small role in Footballers Wives and the role of money grabber Suzie Samson in ITV soap opera Crossroads. Emma Noble went on to portray Suzie Samson.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-guardian_3-5" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[3] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-13" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[13]

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.399999618530273px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">Westbrook—who has openly had several breast enhancements<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-14" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[14] —co-presented Cosmetic Surgery Live alongside Vanessa Feltz. Danniella has also presented a series of fitness DVDs. She has appeared in the reality series ''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I%27m_Famous_and_Frightened! I'm Famous and Frightened!] and Most Haunted, as well as the television comedy sketch show Bo' Selecta''. In addition, she presented Derek Acorah's Ghost Towns with Derek Acorah on LIVINGtv.

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.399999618530273px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">Westbrook has featured in several documentaries, including an interview with British journalist Martin Bashir for the Tonight with Trevor McDonald show and Danniella Westbrook: My Nose and Me for Channel 4.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-15" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[15] In April 2006, Danniella released an autobiography entitled The Other Side of Nowhere, which gives a depiction of her struggles with cocaine.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-biog_4-12" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[4]

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.399999618530273px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">Danniella competed in the fifth series of Dancing on Ice and was partnered by newcomer professional Matthew Gonzalez in 2010. She was eliminated from the show in the semi-finals, placing fourth overall. She appeared in Channel 4 teen soap opera Hollyoaks in February 2013 as an instalment of a storyline, which saw Westbrook's character Trudy Ryan hire Jacqui McQueen (Claire Cooper) and Theresa McQueen (Jorgie Porter).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-16" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[16]  In 2014 she appeared in the Vigilante Film 'Mob Handed'. ===Filmography: Television<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === ==Personal life<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-family:sans-serif;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] == ===Drug addiction<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === <p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:22.399999618530273px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">Westbrook's struggle with cocaine addiction has been widely documented in the British press.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-biog_4-13" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[4]  She has confessed that she first tried the drug at the age of 14, in a nightclub.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-biog_4-14" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[4]  After winning her role in EastEnders at the age of 16, Westbrook was a regular on the London club scene, and her cocaine usage escalated.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-biog_4-15" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[4]  By the age of 21, she was spending £400 a day on cocaine.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-guardian_3-6" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[3]  She has commented "I was always in clubs and everyone was doing coke and it was glamorous - except obviously, it wasn't at all. I was just very young, very stupid and very easily led...I think there should be someone at EastEnders to say to young people when they come in, 'Look, your life is about to change, you're going to be invited to things, and you'll be offered drugs.' Someone who can tell them what sort of people are about, and what sort of papers, and how quickly what you've worked for all those years can be gone."<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-guardian_3-7" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[3]  It is estimated that she has spent over £250,000 on drugs, used 5g of cocaine every single day throughout her first pregnancy,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-biog_4-16" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[4]  and has admitted that during her lowest ebb she attempted suicide several times.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-biog_4-17" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[4] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-17" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[17] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-bbc.co.uk_18-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[18]

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.399999618530273px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">In May 2000, Westbrook was photographed at the British Soap Awards, where an image of her missing septum was given to a series of tabloid newspapers, unveiling her secret and highlighting her excessive drug abuse.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-biog_4-18" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[4]  Westbrook was checked into rehab and six months later, she appeared on the Channel 4 show The Priory with the claim that she was clean and had been free from drugs for months.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-biog_4-19" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[4]  However, hosts Jamie Theakston and Zoë Ball struggled to get coherent answers from Westbrook, who was under the influence of drugs despite her claims of abstinence.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-biog_4-20" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[4] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-19" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[19]  Reflecting back on the event in 2002, Westbrook commented, "I said I was clean, but it was obvious I wasn't. I looked about 50, and my voice was shaky. I should never have been allowed on. They wanted to laugh at me, rip me apart. I despise that sort of thing, but it did me the world of good because watching it I realised, 'I'm so ill.' When it came to the crunch I thought, 'Hang on. I don't want to die.'"<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-bbc.co.uk_18-1" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[18]  She re-entered rehab in order to kick her drug habit, which she has now successfully done.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-biog_4-21" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[4]  Westbrook has since undergone reconstructive surgery on her nose to replace her eroded septum.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-biog_4-22" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[4]

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.399999618530273px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">In 2013, Westbrook revealed in an interview that she had been kidnapped and gang raped by drug dealers during the period she was addicted.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-20" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[20] ===Relationships and family<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === <p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:22.399999618530273px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">During the early 1990s, Westbrook notably dated the pop singer Brian Harvey. Their relationship ended in 1995,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-guardian_3-8" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[3]  and Westbrook began dating Robert Fernandez, the father of her son Kai, born 23 November 1996.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-biog_4-23" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[4]

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.399999618530273px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">In 1998, Westbrook was involved in a car accident, which left her with severe facial injuries, including a dislocated eye.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-biog_4-24" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[4]  She was flung through the car windscreen, but survived, and after corrective surgery, sustained no long-term or major disfigurement.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-21" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[21]  Fernandez was driving the car, and it has been reported that he was travelling at 85 mph.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-22" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[22]

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.399999618530273px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">After splitting with Fernandez, Westbrook married van driver Ben Morgan in 1998, after knowing him for just eight weeks.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-biog_4-25" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[4]  The couple went to live in Australia but the marriage did not last, ending in divorce nine months later.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-biog_4-26" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[4] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-23" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[23]

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.399999618530273px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">She married again, this time millionaire businessman Kevin Jenkins on 27 December 2001. Their daughter Jody B was born three months earlier on 5 September 2001. After appearing on I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! in 2003, Westbrook admitted that she no longer wanted to be a 'celebrity', commenting "I made a pact with Kevin I would do no more TV work that would take me away from home. These days, I live an ordinary life. I work occasionally, but I also do the school run and laundry and prepare my family's dinner".<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-autogenerated3_7-1" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[7]

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.399999618530273px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">She left the UK in 2010 to live in Orange County, California, with her husband and two children. Since relocating to California, Westbrook has become a born again Christian.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-24" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[24]  In late 2011, Westbrook returned to live in the UK.