Donna Yates is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Lisa Hammond. The character and casting was announced in March 2014 and she made her first appearance on 14 April of that year. Donna was introduced as a stallholder and a rival to her new colleagues Bianca Jackson (Patsy Palmer) and Kat Slater (Jessie Wallace). EastEnders executive producer Dominic Treadwell-Collins was happy that Hammond had been cast in the role as EastEnders had been trying to get her into the soap for a while. Donna was the second regular disabled character to appear in EastEnders and some of her storylines raised awareness of disabilities. The character was not intended to be in a wheelchair but this changed after Hammond impressed producers. Donna was characterised as being feisty, hardworking, opinionated and brash, and Treadwell-Collins teased that she would not be an easy character to like at first. However, Donna's loyal, fragile and funny sides to her personality were also explored.
Donna's initial storylines involved her clashes and friendships with her colleagues. Her foster mother Claudette Hubbard (Ellen Thomas) and her foster brother Vincent Hubbard (Richard Blackwood) were later introduced, and Donna was seen often clashing with Vincent's wife Kim Fox (Tameka Empson). Donna also formed friendships with several characters, including Nancy Carter (Maddy Hill) and Abi Branning (Lorna Fitzgerald), and she had short-term romantic encounters with Fatboy Chubb (Ricky Norwood) and Shrimpy (Ben Champniss). In 2016, a controversial storyline aired where Donna attempts to get pregnant with Vincent's sperm, though she is unsuccessful. In 2017, Donna develops a rivalry with Robbie Jackson (Dean Gaffney), but the pair later becomes friends and start a romantic relationship, even moving in together.
In April 2018, it was announced that Hammond had left the soap and she made her final appearance on 20 July of that year. Donna's final storyline involved a feud with Rainie Cross (Tanya Franks) and trying to plant drugs on her to prove that she is an unfit parent, which leads to Donna leaving Walford and ending her relationship with Robbie. Donna received positive reception from critics and viewers and Hammond was longlisted for two Inside Soap awards. Several critics called the character feisty and her romance with Robbie was well-received. However, Donna's departure was criticised for being lowkey. Hammond revealed that she had received abuse from viewers for using a wheelchair after they had seen her walk in scenes. On the day of the airing of Donna's departure, Sophie Dainty from Digital Spy wrote an article detailing reasons why she would miss the character.
Casting and characterisation
In March 2014, it was announced that Lisa Hammond had joined the cast of EastEnders as Donna Yates, who was described as a "tough" and "no-nonsense" market trader who would declare "war" and make enemies with her stall rivals Bianca Jackson (Patsy Palmer) and Kat Slater (Jessie Wallace). Hammond was excited to join the soap opera, saying, "It's a great opportunity to be a part of such a big and popular show. Donna is a bit of a handful but they're always the most fun characters to play! It feels good to be bad!" Executive producer Dominic Treadwell-Collins called Donna a "flinty, aggressive and difficult" character and admitted that she would not initially be an easy character to like, but that she would discover her to be a "funny, loyal but also fragile woman underneath" as viewers get to know her better. Treadwell-Collins called Hammond a "brilliantly comic and sharp actress" and was delighted that she had been cast as Donna as he and other EastEnders staff had been trying to get Hammond into the EastEnders cast "for a long time".
Donna was reported to be the second regular disabled character to feature in EastEnders after Adam Best (David Proud) from 2009 to 2010. Donna was also the first female actress in a wheelchair to feature in the soap opera. The character was not intended to be in a wheelchair, but this was changed when Hammond, who has a restricted growth condition, impressed producers during her audition among able-bodied actors. Hammond revealed in 2015 that she had received abuse from viewers over her disability, explaining, "when I get out of my [wheel]chair to do a scene on my feet, people don't like it. If I'm feeling good and want to walk in that scene, I will. But if I can't or pain levels are bad then I'll use my chair". Hammond added because of this, she has had viewers shout at her and ask her why she uses a wheelchair after they have seen her walk in episodes. Hammond added, "People always think I'm this feisty girl and I can hold my own but in those moments you just don't think of anything to say. It's shock and disbelief. I have to laugh it off".
Hammond told Inside Soap that whilst Donna is initially "very opinionated", there would be a humorous side to her. Hammond explained, "I don't want her to just be a hard-faced cow. There needs to be a glint in her eye, tinged with a bit of sarcasm as well". Hammond admitted that she found it hard to "launch into being such a fiery character", but when she settled in, she thought, "This is fun - people will hate me!" Donna's official profile on the BBC website revealed that "abrasive personality" covers her "hidden depths" and called her intelligent and opinionated. It also revealed that she works hard on her business and "swears by her unfaltering work", but teased that due to this, Donna's love life and other aspects of her life have "slid". They added that whilst Donna is hoping to find the right man, her "abrasive personality" may make it harder to find him. Metro reported that Donna would be a "loudmouth" who "always has to be top dog and will go to any lengths to achieve this"; they added, "Never one to let her guard down, Donna takes no prisoners and always has to have the last word. But is her in-your-face persona all a front?"
Development Introduction and relationships Hammond made her first appearance as Donna in the episode that originally aired on 14 April 2014. Donna debuted during an ongoing storyline revolving around the potential closure of Bridge Street market, which worries many characters. Donna immediately gets on the wrong side of Bianca Jackson (Patsy Palmer) and Kat Slater (Jessie Wallace), who confront her after incorrectly assuming that she is someone from the council. Speaking of Donna's debut scenes, Hammond said, "Not only did I come in on my first day as someone who is difficult and a bit nosey, but I had to do it with Kat and Bianca! They are really strong women, so it was daunting. But Patsy and Jessie have always been a good laugh in between scenes, so it was very easy to settle in." Hammond called Palmer her "mentor" who offered to help her with any questions that she had. Donna's clothes stall is later moved from Spring Lane Market to Bridge Street, which angers many residents. Donna does not try to be nice to other residents, but she ends up bonding with Kat after the latter is scarred in a housefire. Hammond explained, "Because Donna's disabled – the way I am – she's used to getting looked at and dealing with negative comments around that, so I think there might be a holding of hands on that". Donna's friend Pam Coker (Lin Blakley) later tries to get Donna and Kat closer together but they are not "fooled for a moment".
In October 2014, Hammond teased that viewers would learn more about Donna's backstory, adding, "We'll get to know a little bit more about her life rather than the market stall and the bitchy-bitchy: more about who she is and where she has come from". In January 2015, Donna moves to Albert Square, with it being teased that viewers would be teasing more of the character. Donna's foster mother, Claudette Hubbard (Ellen Thomas), and her foster brother Vincent Hubbard (Richard Blackwood), were introduced later in 2015. Vincent and Donna were characterised as having a close bond and being "deeply loyal to each other". The following year, Donna is left with a "tough dilemma" when Claudette asks her to talk to Vincent for her, hoping that Donna will get him to forgive and bring the family back together; although she is initially torn, Donna does try to talk to Vincent but he responds angrily and leaves, saying that he does even want to talk about his mother. Hammond later explained that whilst Donna has not forgiven Claudette, she misses her and wants to see her fix things with Vincent and wants her family together.
Throughout her time in the soap, several of Donna's storylines focused on her loyalty to her friends, such as when she tells Pam that she suspects that her husband Less (Roger Sloman) is having an affair and when she stands up for Nancy Carter (Maddy Hill) when she is fighting with her family. In 2017, Donna moves into a house share with Abi Branning (Lorna Fitzgerald), Ben Mitchell (Harry Reid) and Jay Brown (Jamie Borthwick) and becomes especially good friends with Abi, sticking by her when she reveals that she is having an affair with her sister's boyfriend Steven Beale (Aaron Sidwell). Donna was often seen clashing with Vincent's wife, Kim Fox (Tameka Empson). In November 2016, Kim and Donna have an argument after she steals Donna's blue badge for her own use despite not being disabled. After this is discovered and Kim also admits to sometimes using the disabled toilets, so Donna berates her and tells her and tells her what life is like for her being disabled and tells her to not do it as it is wrong. This scene was praised by viewers on social media for highlighting disability awareness, with Digital Spy suggesting that it was part of EastEnders attempt to incorporate some "down-to-earth storylines" into the soap.
Romances with Fatboy and Shrimpy In 2015, Donna had a short-lived romance with Fatboy Chubb (Ricky Norwood), who she had been friends with beforehand. A writer from Bournemouth Daily Echo believed that viewers would see a softer side to Donna due to her romance with Fatboy. Hammond believed that the pair were well-suited for each other as they were already good friends. She added, "Fatboy has got a bit of an edge to him, but he’s very nice. Donna's probably gone for a flash guy in the past, but Fats is kind-hearted and he can handle her attitude as well". Hammond revealed that she and Norwood had to refilm their kissing scene several as things kept going wrong in the studio, such as a light cracking, which Hammond found humorous. She joked, "Myself and Ricky just resigned ourselves to the fact that we would have to keep kissing over and over!" Hammond had high emotions about the scene as it was her first onscreen kiss on EastEnders, but credited her "brilliant" director and Norwood's professionalism to making her feel comfortable. She added that she was happy that she had been able to get to know Norwood for over a year before kissing him in contrast to other projects where she had to kiss actors after only knowing them for a day.
In the storyline, Donna and Fatboy begin a close friendship, but Donna begins to develop feelings for him, which leads to her flirting with him; they then kiss and spend the night together. After this, it becomes clear that Donna and Fatboy want different things as the news about them spreads across Albert Square, as Fatboy sees Donna as just a friend. Fatboy ends up asking Donna out for a drink, but he later breaks things off with her. When Vincent – who was not a fan of the pairing – finds out how Fatboy treated Donna, he visits Fatboy's home and takes "shocking action" to teach him a lesson, which scares him. It was teased that Vincent's revenge could go "too far". Hammond had previously told Inside Soap that there would be some "interesting" scenes where Vincent would be a "bit too up in [Donna's] business" regarding men, which Hammond believed was "very authentic" to "tackle".