‘People seem to think they own you!’ Tracy Beaker’s Dani Harmer says she has had depression since she was 14 and ‘wouldn’t have coped’ with social media as she reflects on online abuse
Dani Harmer has opened up about online abuse and said she doesn’t know how she’d have coped if social media had existed when she was younger.
The actress, 32, who rose to stardom aged 12 playing CBBC star Tracy Beaker, said during an appearance on the PLT: Behind Closed Doors Podcast that she has suffered with depression ‘on and off’ since she was 14.
Reflecting on her experience with online abuse, Dani said trolls ‘think they own you’ having social media at a young age would have ‘caught her at a bad time’.
Candid: Dani Harmer has opened up about online abuse and said she doesn’t know how she’d have coped if social media had existed when she was younger (pictured October 2020)
She said: ‘People seem to think they own you and they can literally say whatever they like to you. It’s hard enough being an actor really because we’re getting criticised left right and centre anyway it’s part of the job.
‘So I don’t really need Tim who lives in Tunbridge Wells telling me that I wasn’t very good or I looked a bit podgy, I don’t really need that to be honest with you, so yeah I think it’s definitely changed.
‘I just really thank goodness that it wasn’t around when I was younger because I really don’t know how I would have coped.
Opening up: The actress, 32, who rose to stardom aged 12 playing CBBC star Tracy Beaker, said during an appearance on the PLT: Behind Closed Doors Podcast that she has suffered with depression ‘on and off’ since she was 14 (pictured September 2003)
‘I’ve suffered with depression on and off since I was about 14, so have that caught me at a bad time honestly, I don’t know.’
Talking about her mental health now, Dani said: ‘Even at 32 I’ve got the thickest skin ever I can pretty much take anything but it will always be that one comment that I read on social media that I’m thinking about and not the hundreds of thousands amazing, lovely, positive ones I get.
‘I can’t even imagine what it’s like for teenagers and young people now, it’s not great it’s really not. Social media should be such a great positive place where we all kind of come on and talk about ourselves, you can interact with us.’
‘I’ve met some amazing people on social media who have become friends really. I think something really needs to change because I don’t want to have this anxiety every single time, I open my phone, like nobody needs that.’
Social media: Reflecting on her experience with online abuse, Dani said trolls ‘think they own you’ having social media at a young age would have ‘caught her at a bad time’ (pictured November 2018)
Dani went on to discuss the instant fame she received after first appearing on the programme and how friends would question why people were staring at them.
She said: ‘I was 12 when I first got the part which is crazy. So, it’ll be 20 years this summer that we first started shooting which makes me wanna vomit a little bit in my mouth because I’m pretty sure I’m not old enough for that to be a thing.
‘Like surely? But I am, I am old enough. So yeah 20 years, and honestly that time has just flown by it really has, but I can still kind of remember it like it was yesterday.
‘It went from like the first episode going out to me being recognised almost instantly, it was just the weirdest experience. I couldn’t just go to the shop anymore I was getting followed by people and everyone wanted to talk to me it was really strange.
She said: ‘People seem to think they own you and they can literally say whatever they like to you. It’s hard enough being an actor really because we’re getting criticised left right and centre anyway it’s part of the job’ (pictured October 2020)
‘I think my friends at first were like “Why are they staring at us do you want me to go and say something” I was like erm I think it might be because I’ve been on the telly.
‘So yeah, I think it was just a really strange experience to try and adapt to especially for like my parents. So yeah, it just happened so quickly.’
Discussing the success of the Tracy Beaker spin-off – My Mum Tracy Beaker -which aired earlier this year, she said: ‘I’m just so pleased that it went down the way it did…
‘Like I think it could have gone either way people we’re either gonna be like yayyy Tracy’s back lets all sit down and watch it or they were gonna be like oh not her again, we don’t care anymore.
‘So lucky it wasn’t the latter, it’s just exceeded any of our expectations. We got the most views ever for a CBBC show ever in the history of CBBC, it’s just ridiculous.’