The Story of Tracy Beaker, written by
Jacqueline Wilson, was first published in 1991. Wilson's book
Cliffhanger had previously been adapted as a two-part drama for television in 1995, though this was the first of her works to become a fully fledged series. The first series was filmed on location at Amherst Lodge in
Ealing, which doubled as the care home Stowey House, during Summer 2001. The building, which was a former
maternity home and
children's home, was sold by
Ealing Council shortly after the series aired, and production moved to
Cardiff for series 2. Amherst Lodge has since been developed into flats. Due to a change in production location, many of the cast from the first series departed: Jay Haher (
Zac Patterson), Sonny Muslim (
Ryan Patterson), Joe Starrs (
Peter Ingham) and Jerome Holder (
Maxy King). The building used across the second and third series, plus
Tracy Beaker: The Movie of Me was The Hollies, a former
nursing home on Station Road in
Llanishen. No reference was made to the change in location and the children's home continued to be known as Stowey House. The Hollies now houses private offices. The fourth series was filmed at Skomer House, on Marine Parade in
Penarth, and the change in location was addressed within the programme for the first time, and the children's home was named as Cliffside during the series. The building, which was once a nursing home, has since been redeveloped into a luxury hotel and spa, Holm House. The fifth and final series saw another change in production location, with the Elm Tree House School in
Llandaff doubling as another new care home, Elm Tree House, taking inspiration from the real building. After production ended, the former school was demolished to make way for a small housing development. The name of the building was retained for
Tracy Beaker Returns and the first series of
The Dumping Ground, regardless of being filmed in
Newcastle and not
Cardiff. ==Episodes==