Jodie Gold is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Kylie Babbington.

On 24 October 2011, it was announced that Babbington's contract would not be renewed and Jodie departed on 14 November 2011, along with Poppy Meadow (Rachel Bright).

Originally introduced as a love interest for Darren Miller (Charlie G. Hawkins), she is also the daughter of established character Vanessa Gold (Zöe Lucker).

She then finds her mother, Vanessa (Zöe Lucker) who hands her the keys to her new car, and Jodie reveals she got the job she had interviewed for at Roxy Mitchell's (Rita Simons) salon.

Their relationship gets off to a rocky start, especially when Darren accuses Jodie of stealing his World Cup tickets, but eventually, they agree to have sex.

During a special lunch on Vanessa's birthday, Harry shows little interest in her, and Jodie tells her that she realizes now that they are not happy together and urges her to go back to Max, which she does.

Harry then starts to take revenge, including throwing a brick through the window and killing Jodie's cat.

In a conversation with her friend Poppy Meadow (Rachel Bright), Jodie says she wishes Harry would stop blaming her for something that was not her fault and she appears as a "mascot" for the relaunch of the car lot, much to Vanessa's annoyance, though no one turns up as Darren did not send the fliers out, so he is fired.

Darren gains custody of George, who keeps Jodie awake at night, causing her to be late for work where she is told by Roxy that there is a new manager of the salon, Max's ex-wife Tanya Jessop (Jo Joyner).

He is soon discovered by Jack Branning (Scott Maslen), who informs Jodie and she calls off the wedding until Darren wins her back round.

[1] The character was announced on 10 May 2010 as a love interest for Darren Miller (Charlie G. Hawkins) and daughter to Vanessa Gold (Zöe Lucker).

Executive producer Bryan Kirkwood told entertainment website Digital Spy, "I'm really excited about Kylie taking on the role of Jodie.

[10] On 24 October 2011, Digital Spy reported Babbington would be departing EastEnders in November, after her contract reached its natural conclusion.

"[2] Her profile on the official EastEnders website describes her as someone who seems "dippy" but knows how to get what she wants, which is shown when she gets a job, a date and a new car all within her first episode.

Although Vanessa and Harry mollycoddle her, Jodie is not spoilt, and she is sympathetic and kind, and has an extensive wardrobe and collection of handbags.

[15] Derek Lord from The Press and Journal, however, said it was "a welcome addition to the show" and that "like a double act, [Jodie and Poppy are] no Morecambe and Wise, but at least they bring an element of something approaching humour to the otherwise soul-destroying drabness of the London soap".

[16] In the Daily Mirror, Jennifer Rodger called them a "refreshing change"[17] and Tony Stewart deemed them "The daftest girls in Soapland and probably the funniest".

[19] Jane Simon and Brian McIver of the Daily Record described them as "an adorable female double act [and] E20's answer to 2 Shoes", and wrote of their departure; "apparently there just isn't enough room for sunny, funny, glass-half-full types in Walford".

[21] The Daily Mirror's Rodger said she was "sad" the duo had left, saying she "found their scenes together hilarious", hoping she would see both Babbington and Bright in a new show together.

[22] Bright stated during her first main stint in 2011, she received a lot of post telling her how much fans liked the double-act between Poppy and Jodie, and that they were a "breath of fresh air".