| Dana Monroe | |||||||||||
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| EastEnders character | |||||||||||
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| Portrayed by | Barbara Smith | ||||||||||
| Duration | 2021–2022 | ||||||||||
| First appearance | Episode 6247 1 April 2021 | ||||||||||
| Last appearance | Episode 6549 1 September 2022 | ||||||||||
| Classification | Former; regular | ||||||||||
| Introduced by | Jon Sen | ||||||||||
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Dana Monroe (initially credited as Dana Adams) is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Barbara Smith. Smith auditioned for the role over Zoom due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on television and was cast as Dana, a love interest for established character Bobby Beale (Clay Milner Russell), making her first appearance on 1 April 2021. She was initially cast in a 6-month guest stint, but was promoted to a regular cast member and had her family introduced to the soap. She was overjoyed to have been cast due to having been a fan of the soap since her youth. Dana has been shown to be a bubbly, generous and likeable character. Smith was initially unsure if viewers would like her, but critics have said that it has been refreshing to have a character with good intentions on EastEnders. It was announced on 10 June 2022 that Smith had been axed by new executive producer Chris Clenshaw, with Dana set to exit the show later in the year. Smith admitted that it was fitting for Dana to leave as she was of university age and was excited for her final scenes to air. She also confirmed that if she was asked, she would return to the soap in the future. Dana's final scenes aired on 1 September 2022.
As well as her on-off relationship with Bobby, her tumultuous relationships with her relatives have been central to Dana's storylines. Her father Harvey Monroe (Ross Boatman) is shown to be a strict father to Dana and attempts to control her, while her brother Aaron Monroe (Charlie Wernham) disgusts Dana with his racist and Islamophobic attitudes. Smith noted that despite Dana being at the bottom of the Monroe family's power hierarchy, it would not stop her from attempting to change their family's old-fashioned mindsets. Her relationship with Bobby has been well received by viewers and critics, with one of their scenes nominated for Feel Good Moment at the 2021 Inside Soap Awards. Smith was also nominated in the newcomer categories at the 2021 I Talk Telly Awards and the Digital Spy Reader Awards for her portrayal of Dana.