Samantha "Sam" Mitchell (also Butcher and Hunter) is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders. The third member of the Mitchell family to appear on the soap, Sam was introduced as a 15-year-old schoolgirl in July 1990, originally played by Danniella Westbrook. The actress quit in 1993, but Sam reappeared from 1995 to 1996 and from 1999 to 2000. In both her 1996 and 2000 exits, Sam was written out earlier than the producers intended due to off-screen controversies surrounding Westbrook. In early 2002, the character was introduced for a fourth time, but the role was recast to another actress, Kim Medcalf, who stayed in the role until late 2005. Diederick Santer later decided to reintroduce the character for a brief stint in 2009 and he opted to bring Westbrook back for a shor