Actress Louisa Lytton is making a surprise comeback to EastEnders as Ruby Allen, twelve years after her character left the Square in the back of a black cab.

Ruby was a regular character in the soap from 2005-2006, and originally arrived in Walford after running away from boarding school to find her gangster father, Johnny Allen.

The character subsequently became best friends with Stacey Slater, and later became caught in the crossfire of Johnny’s feud with Phil Mitchell. Following Johnny’s death in prison, Ruby went on to have a relationship with Sean Slater, unaware he was a serial womaniser, only dating her for her fortune.

Says 29 year old Louisa: “EastEnders was my first acting job out of drama school, and opened so many doors for me. It’s wonderful to be given the opportunity to come back and explore my character, and I’m excited to see what’s in store for Ruby.

“We last saw her twelve years ago as a young girl, and now she is returning as a woman with scope for major change and some brilliantly challenging storylines.”

After leaving EastEnders, Louisa appeared in the fourth series of Strictly Come Dancing. The actress, who was paired with professional Vincent Simone, was just 17 years old at the time, making her the youngest celebrity to have taken part in the BBC1 show.

She then followed this up with a role in The Bill from 2007-2009, playing PC Beth Green. More recently, she has appeared on stage; last year playing Rizzo in a UK touring production of Grease.

Louisa Lytton played Pc Beth Green from 2007 to 2009.

Adds EastEnders’ boss John Yorke, “Louisa is a fantastic actress and I am delighted that she is returning to EastEnders. Now twelve years older, viewers will see a much more mature and confident Ruby, who is set to be involved in one of our biggest storylines later this year.”