EastEnders' Amy Mitchell actress reveals surprising hidden link to two co-stars
Since joining EastEnders three years ago, Ellie Dadd has tackled big storylines focusing on self-harm and mental health as troubled teen Amy Mitchell. Now she's ready to take a break for something more lighthearted – oh, yes she is! This Christmas, Ellie will be swapping E20 for Fairfield Halls when she plays Belle in Beauty And The Beast. And while she's still only 20, Ellie is an old hand at panto.
'I started panto when I was six,' says Ellie. 'I did it for four years, age six to 10. It was the best time ever.' She enrolled in D&B Academy of Performing Arts and met her future EastEnders co-stars Tilly Keeper (Louise Mitchell) and Zack Morris (Keegan Baker), who both joined the soap ahead of her.
'It was quite fun seeing them when I got there. I was like, 'Oh, my goodness!" This panto season, however, she will be playing the princess – something she's dreamt of since she was a young girl. "Isn't it every girl's dream to play a princess at least once in their lives?' laughs Ellie.
Panto is famously gruelling, with two performances a day, and lead stars taking just Christmas Day off. But being on EastEnders has trained Ellie. EastEnders has taught me a lot,' she says. 'We film 14 scenes a day and we're there five days a week
And if a scene is not going to plan, things need to change quickly. You learn to trust your instincts,' says Ellie. 'If things go wrong, you're like, OK, that's fine. We can sort it. Everybody's there for you." Just because she's taking a break to do panto, though, it doesn't mean Ellie's character Amy is off screen for long. They're just letting me have a couple of weeks off and then I'll be back,' she says.
Next year, however, she might be asking bosses to write her out for a bit longer, as she dreams of following in the footsteps of fellow Walford waltzers such as Jamie Borthwick (Jay Brown), Bobby Brazier (Freddie Slater) and Molly Rainford (Anna Knight) to take on the challenge of Strictly Come Dancing. It was visiting the set to watch the live show that gave Ellie the Strictly bug.
'If I had the opportunity to do it, I'd absolutely love to do it,' says Ellie. 'I love everything. The costumes, the dancing, just being able to go up there every weekend and put your heart on the line and enjoy yourself.
'It was honestly crazy just to see how it all works, because you don't really get to see it from watching it at home.'
However, Ellie admits just watching the high-energy routines left her feeling fatigued. 'I don't know how those dancers do it every week," she says, laughing. 'They must be exhausted.'
Ellie was just 17 when she joined EastEnders and was soon targeted by a stalker, who was handed a nine-month suspended sentence just before Christmas 2024, plus a five-year restraining order. Despite the ordeal, Ellie insists she's coping with the rigours of fame.
'You get used to the recognition,' she smiles. 'I forget I am in a massive soap like EastEnders.' Fame might be unsettling, but Ellie feels EastEnders' high profile also means the soap can be a force for good. When Amy had a self-harm storyline, Ellie was flattered when viewers said her scenes reflected their own experiences. It's great to know that I can help a lot of people through certain situations,' says Ellie.
This year the BBC soap celebrated its 40th anniversary. Ellie was thrilled to attend the 2025 British Soap Awards, where EastEnders won the coveted Best Soap category. 'It's great to dress up and go to all these events,' says Ellie. 'It's something you don't normally get to do. It's just a completely different world.'
Acting is a tough industry so Ellie is grateful for every day playing Amy, but she has loftier ambitions too "I would love to be in a big movie or a big West End show, but it's such a difficult industry that you're very lucky to have any job in it. Whatever I'm in, I'm lucky because there are thousands of other people that would have fought to be in the position I'm in.'
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