Dean was born in Potters Bar, Hertfordshire to parents Leslie (a tailor) and Ellie Dean, in a cottage rented on the grand estate of English romantic novelist Barbara Cartland, known as Camfield Place. The youngest of three children, Dean has two older brothers, Stephen and Martin. Dean's family moved to the north Buckinghamshire village of Stoke Goldington when she was three years old. She acquired a penchant for performing at an early age; both she and her older brother Stephen attended a local dance school, and they also performed a dance act together on stage.
Personal life
Growing up in the public eye was hard for Dean, and the constant media attention on her appearance (particularly her fluctuating weight) was especially tough, given her young and susceptible age. Dean has since stated that her self-confidence was damaged during this time, and this, as well as back pain, contributed to her decision to get a breast reduction in her teens. Dean has since stated that she is a lot more comfortable in her own skin, and far more relaxed about public interest than she used to be as a teenager, commenting: "I have stopped pleasing people - and I'm calmer and more self assured than I've ever been."  In 2001 Dean got engaged to jobbing actor Jason Pethers after knowing him for only a few months. They married in September 2002 at All Saints' Church in Marylebone. Her close friend and EastEnders co-star, Susan Tully, was a bridesmaid at the wedding. Many of Dean's fellow castmates from EastEnders (past and present) attended the wedding including Wendy Richard, Barbara Windsor, Pam St. Clement, Steve McFadden, Gillian Taylforth, June Brown, Lucy Benjamin, Adam Woodyatt, Anna Wing, Todd Carty, Ricky Groves, Hannah Waterman, Laila Morse and Anita Dobson. After five years of marriage, it was announced in 2007 that Dean and Pethers had separated. Dean subsequently began a relationship with model and dancer Bowen Perrin, after meeting on the set of the Ipswich panto production Cinderella during Christmas 2007. Dean is 18 years Perrin's senior. The couple have since separated.  Her older brother, Stephen J. Dean, is also a performer; they have appeared together on stage in several pantomimes. As well as acting, Dean is a keen singer (with a mezzo-soprano voice) and tap dancer. Dean currently lives in the Bedfordshire village of Wootton.

Q: Was she ever in a romantic relationship?
A: In 2001 Dean got engaged to jobbing actor Jason Pethers after knowing him for only a few months.
Did she marry him?
They married in September 2002 at All Saints' Church in Marylebone.
They married in September 2002 at All Saints' Church in Marylebone.