EastEnders star Danielle Harold makes TV comeback a year after tragic exit

Former EastEnders star Danielle Harold is making a big return to the screen following her soap exit as Lola Pearce.

The new series of Celebrity MasterChef will start with four weeks of three ‘heat’ episodes which will test the celebrities’

skills in the kitchen, before the best cooks continue through to the final stages.

It was recently revealed that I’m A Celebrity star Danielle, 32, will be competing in the upcoming season alongside The Traitors hun Diane Carson, Strictly star Vito Coppola (who lifted the glitterball trophy with Corrie’s Ellie Leach just last year) and Steps’ Ian ‘H’ Watkins.

In the first task, five celebrities will face the ‘under-the-cloche’ challenge where they will create a dish from scratch.

Then they will deliver a two-course dinner party menu, before the successful cooks step inside a professional restaurant and magic up their own food truck dish.

The quarter-finals will see the amateur chefs receive critique from returning champions and finalists, with other tasks including a pizza round and the famous chef’s table.

Lola sits in her wheelchair at the beach in EastEnders
Danielle played Lola Pearce on the soap (Picture: BBC)

And MasterChef isn’t the only show she’s making a cameo in as Danielle was recently spotted with her former EastEnders co-star Max Bowden for an upcoming episode of Celebrity Antiques Road Trip.

The pair were all smiles as they posed for a picture together while filming for the beloved BBC show.

A fan account shared the picture on their Instagram with the caption: ‘Danielle and Max Bowden reunion.’

The two were also recently spotted in a small town in Gloucestershire with presenter Ishy Khan.

Danielle’s character Lola died earlier last year after being diagnosed with a brain tumour. The powerful storyline was emotional and focused on how Lola’s illness impacted her close friends and family, as well as the Walford community.

In the aftermath, while the likes of Ben (Max Bowden) and Billy (Perry Fenwick) struggled with their grief, there was a strong focus on Jay, who even turned to drugs to try and numb his emotions.

Lola was also remembered by the residents of Walford at Christmas time last year, with a flash-forward to the festive season having confirmed that a picture of her will be sitting on the bar of the Queen Vic.

During the EastEnders Christmas special, Lola shocks Jay and Honey Mitchell (Emma Barton) as she revealed they will run this year’s London Marathon.

Danielle’s exit storyline also won her a National Television Award in the best serial drama performance category last September.

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