Danny Pennant

Danny Pennant is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Gary Lucy. The character and casting was announced in August 2012 and Lucy made his first appearance on 27 September 2012. Lucy was happy to be cast in the soap as he had grown up watching it in his household and was happy to portray an LGBTQ+ character. Danny was characterised as a city banker with sex appeal and charisma. Danny was initially introduced in a guest stint as part of a love triangle between established gay characters Syed Masood (Marc Elliott) and Christian Clarke (John Partridge). In the storyline, Danny and Syed kiss several times, which threatens the latter's engagement to Christian. Lucy could not sleep the night before his first same-sex kiss but he praised Elliot for making him comfortable. Lucy had been warned that he could face backlash from fans of Christian and Syed's pairing, but he believed that the role was too good to turn down. Danny later tries to blackmail Christian and Syed after they get married, but this fails and Danny departs in the episode broadcast on 2 November 2012. Lucy expected to get a lot of online hate for Danny's actions, but this did not happen.

Lucy returned to the role in 2013 as a regular cast member, which he was happy about as he wanted to explore the character further. Danny's return aired on 7 June of that year. Upon his return, Danny begins working for Janine Butcher (Charlie Brooks) and has sex with her. Lucy explained that Danny has a complex sexual preference and hinted that Danny might be using Janine for his own gain. Danny later begins a relationship with Lucy Beale (Hetti Bywater), but he ends up flirting and kissing Johnny Carter (Sam Strike) as part of his coming out storyline. Danny was later written out of the soap and he made his final appearance as Danny on 14 February 2014; his departure saw Lucy find out that Danny has been messaging Johnny on a dating app and she threatens to expose him for embezzlement if he does not leave. For his role as Danny, Pennant was longlisted for the Villain of the Year at the 2013 British Soap Awards. Some critics were surprised by Danny's romances with Lucy and Janine, whilst some viewers were unhappy with the way that Danny presented bisexuality. Johnny and Danny's same-sex kiss received complaints from some viewers but this was criticised by critics, Lucy and EastEnders writers.