Who Remembers Tracy Beaker? Tracy Beaker, who lives in a children’s home A.K.A. ”The Dumping Ground” along with a group of other troubled children. If you would like to see how much the cast of this iconic show have changed over the years then keep scrolling to see what they look like now!
1. Tracy Beaker!
Tracy Beaker is of course the main character in the show and is undoubtedly the most popular among fans. Tracy is a ten year old girl who is known for her mischievous nature and wild imagination which more often than not, lands her in a lot of trouble. She is also known for having a short temper and displaying an argumentative attitude towards those around her but in reality she is a fiercely loyal friend and is doing her best to cope with a difficult situation.
Now: Dani Harmer!
Tracy Beaker actress, Dani Harmer is now 29 years old and after leaving the show she attempted to build a career in the music industry which she later abandoned. In March 2012 she competed in Let’s Dance for Sport Relief where she reached the final and ended the show as a joint runner up.
She is currently in a committed relationship with partner Simon Brough and in 2016 the pair welcomed daughter, Avarie-Belle Betsy Rachel Brough!
2. Justine Littlewood!
Justine Littlewood and Tracy Beaker are constant rivals and do their upmost to annoy each other at any chance they get. Like Tracy, Justine is hot headed and argumentative and is often portrayed as being difficult to get along with. It is later disclosed that Justine was placed in care following the sudden death of her mother which resulted in her father being unable to take adequate care of her but still he maintained regular visits.
Now: Montanna Thompson!
Justine Littlewood actress, Montanna Thompson is now 29 years old and after leaving the series in 2005 she has been in the newspapers on account of her antisocial behaviour which saw her wildly partying and bingeing on cocaine, cannabis and alcohol. She has since kept her private life under wraps and is known for her role in the 2017 film Kill Or Be Killed.
3. Liam ”Crash” Daniels!
Liam ”Crash” Daniels was a close friend of Tracy’s during their time at the dumping ground and like Tracy he suffers from a bad temper which causes him to break the things around him. It is later disclosed that Crash was placed in care as a result of the physical violence he was suffering at home at the hands of his father he would beat him violently. Crash is also fiercely loyal and would do anything for his friends and like Tracy he is shown to have a creative streak.
Now: Darragh Mortell!
Crash actor, Darragh Mortell is now 29 years old who since leaving the show has made appearances in Casualty, Miranda, The Bill, Holby City, Hollyoaks and currently he stars in Diddy TV.
In 2015 Darragh won the award for Best Experimental film at the London Independent film festival for his debut short film ‘Peep Dish’ which starred himself, Jumayn Hunter and Skins alumni Georgia Henshaw.
4. Jackie Hopper!
Before being placed in care, Jackie Hopper was cared for by her grandfather but unfortunately after developing Alzheimers he was no longer able to look after her. She builds a strong friendship with Crash and Tracy while at the dumping ground and the trio help each other overcome difficult times.
Now: Abby Rakic-Platt!
Jackie Hopper actress, Abby Rakic-Platt is now 25 years old and since leaving the show in 2005 she has appeared in the 2010 Sainsbury’s Christmas advert as well as hit British television shows such as The Bill, The Inspector Lynley Mysteries, Breathless, Casualty and Chewing Gum. She was also cast as Charlie in the theatre performance of Vera, Vera, Vera.
5. Lol Plakova!
Laurence “Lol” Plakova is the the brother of Bouncer and the pair are known for constantly getting into mischief and eating junk food. As he is a year older than Tracy, Lol leaves the dumping ground and is placed in the halfway house alongside his brother he was moved there previously.
Now: Ciaran Joyce!
Lol actor, Ciaran Joyce is now 30 years old and since leaving the show he has starred in 2007 horror film, Summer Scars as well as 2006 sci-fi series Torchwood. He also had a leading role in Young Dracula from 2007 until 2008 where he played the character Boris.
6. Rio Wellard!
Rio Wellard is the second eldest of the Wellard children and, the only boy. He is known for being rather slow and forgetful and often just follows what ever his sisters do while rarely making decisions for himself. At first, Rio is portrayed as somewhat of a bully however after his elder sister leaves the dumping ground it gives him the chance to show who he really is and leads to him forming friendships with the other children in the home.
Now: Craig Roberts!
Rio Wellard actor, Craig Roberts is now a 27 years old successful actor, writer and director. Since leaving the show he is known for having starred in comedy-drama Submarine (2010), the television series’ Being Human (2011,2012) and it’s spin off series Becoming Human (2011) as well as Red Oaks (2014–2017). Most notably he played in hit comedy movies Neighbours and 22 Jump Street alongside Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum!
Besides this he has also appeared in the 2012 music video directed by Tim Burton for the The Killers’ single “Here with Me” alongside Winona Ryder.
7. Bouncer Plakova!
Bradley “Bouncer” Plakova is the elder brother of Lol Plakova and returns to the dumping ground to work as a chef. Bouncer is known for his caring personality and is always shown to be protective of his younger brother and the other children in the home. He finds it easy to make friends and acts as an older brother to everyone in the dumping ground.
Now: Ben Hanson!
Since leaving the show Bouncer Plakova actor, Ben Hanson abandoned his acting career and is now an Estate Agent who regularly updates his followers on aspects of his life via social media. The star is currently the Welsh Ambassador of Balls To Cancer.
8. Layla!
Layla is a sweet and caring girl with Cerebral Palsy who is very sensitive to change which makes her easily upset. She is close friends with Hayley and Jackie as well as brothers, Lol and Bouncer who treat her like a little sister by watching over her and make sure that she is alright.
Now: Cara Readle!
Layla actress, Cara Readle is now 27 years old and since leaving the show she has appeared in Casualty where she played a patient with Cerebral Palsy and Sky One drama The Smoke as a receptionist. She has also starred in the BBC Wales TV series Baker Boys and most recently she has worked with BBC Ouch! where she shared her life experiences with her disability.
9. Roxy Wellard!
Roxanne ”Roxy” Wellard is the youngest of the three Wellard children and is known for being the leader of her siblings on account of her intelligence and ability to cause trouble everywhere she goes. Roxy is portrayed as a stereo typical goth and is often shown wearing black clothes with gothic accessories which adds to her intimidating appearance.
Now: Sophie Borja!
Roxy actress, Sophie Borja-Edwards is now 24 years old and since leaving the show she has appeared in Being Human as an extra but has since left acting and is now a qualified hairdresser and makeup artist. The star is also a proud vegan and regularly shares snaps of her new life with her social media followers!
10. Peter Ingham!
Peter Ingham is a quiet and reserved little boy who stole the hearts of his fans. After his parents died Peter became and orphan and was cared for by his grandmother until she passed away leaving Peter nowhere else to go but the dumping ground. At first things didn’t go well for Peter as Tracy took an instant disliking to him but over time the pair formed a strong friendship and unlike the other children, he believes all of the tales Tracy shares about her mother.
Now: Joe Starrs!
Adorable little Peter is all grown up and actor Joe Starrs is now an assistant director who is known for his work on hit Bradley Cooper film Burnt (2015), horror sci-fi Astral (2018) and comedy drama Guardians (2017). The star has kept his personal live firmly under wraps but from the looks of things, he’s doing great!
11. Louise Goven played by Chelsie Padley
Louise Goven was the person that Tracy and Justine used to argue over with both of them saying that she was their best friend. In the end she becomes close to Justine which annoys Tracy but Louise doesn’t realise that being friends with Justine means having to do everything that she says.
Chelsie Padley hasn’t really focused on her an acting career since leaving Tracy Beaker, but has instead taken up fitness training. She has her own website where people can buy healthy products to help them train. They sell a mixture of protein shakes and kits that work towards a healthier liftestyle.
12. Dolly played by Chloe Hibbert-Waters
We will all remember Dolly for being the cute, small one that loved to be around Tracy. What some of the hardcore fans will remember is when she gets fostered in season 3.
On iMDb, it seems like Chloe Hibbert-Waters has only ever appeared in The Story of Tracy Beaker and hasn’t done any more acting other than that. We’d definitely be able to recognise her if we saw her walking down the street.
13. Cam played by Lisa Coleman
We all know Cam to be Tracy Beakers almost foster parent. They have a never ending love/hate relationship but we knew deep down they loved each other regardless of the little arguments.
Cam ALWAYS tried her hardest with Tracy… but, as we learned, Tracy was almost impossible to deal with.
via/Tracybeaker
The role of Cam was played by actress Lisa Coleman. Prior to her years on Tracy Beaker she had a long standing role in Casualty playing the character Jude Korcanik from 1994-1997. She made her debut on the CBBC show back in 2002!
She starred in the show for three whole years then it was a massive five years after ‘Tracy Beaker’ ended that she came back in 2010 for two years in ‘Tracy Beaker Returns’.
But… what does she look like now?!
She has also taken part in doing some radio work back in 1999 where she starred in a six part series titled Old Dog and Partridge.
Aside from this she has made one-off appearances in many different shows. We’ve seen her in the famous soaps like Hollyoaks and EastEnders.
She is also a volunteer occupational therapist when she isn’t spending her time acting! She has definitely changed since we first saw her on our screens in Tracy Beaker!
14. Ben Batambuze played by Luke Youngblood
Ben wasn’t like the other kids at the dumping ground because he didn’t actually live there. Instead he was from a wealthy background and lived in a big house, which he lied to Tracy about. He spent a lot of his time hanging around the dumping group to spend time with his best mate, Tracy.
The scene in which Ben is the DJ at a party has become quite the meme on social media.
This is him today…
Luke Youngblood will also have been remembered for appearing in two of the Harry Potter films as Lee Jordan in the early 2000’s, but that was before Tracy Beaker. Since then, he has continued acting, being credited for a number of TV series such as Galavant, Glee and Queen of the South.
He is about to appear in a TV movie called Playing Dead which is currently in post-production. the film is about a family of morticians who are confronted by the mother who abandoned them years ago and her request to help fake her death.
15 Elaine Boyak played by Nisha Nayar
Elaine Boyak, otherwise known as Elaine the Pain, was the careworker that we all loved to hate. She had a peaceful approach that always annoyed the kids, just as much as it annoyed us, but she always had good intensions. Thinking back, we were all a little bit mean to her really.
Nisha Nayar, just like quite a few of the Tracy Beaker stars, has also appeared in The Bill and Casualty, but her most recent work was appearing as Samira Kohil in Doctors in 2017. She has her own website, with a bio which details everything that she has worked on.
Her bio reads,
“She actively supports UNICEF and the Women in the World Foundation and appears to be as enamoured with acting as she ever was.”
“I feel really fortunate to have worked with some amazing people and played some wonderful parts and hope I am lucky enough to continue to do so”.
16 Duke Ellington Played by Clive Rowe
Duke was the one we all used to laugh at but appreciate for all the emotional moments he had with the kids of the dumping ground, including Tracy. He is known to be the chef and gardner of the house and is always there to help out when needed.
Since Tracy Beaker, Clive has appeared in a few more children’s TV shows including So Awkward on CBBC and The Evermoor Chronicles on Disney Channel. Not only that, but he was featured in the new Beauty and the Beast film in 2017 alongside Harry Potter’s Emma Watson! Well done Duke!
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