Jamie Mitchell is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Jack Ryder. The character debuted on 9 November 1998 and became one of the show's central protagonists, until he was killed off on 25 December 2002.

During his time on the programme, Jamie's story arc mostly revolved on his close relationships with his godfather Phil Mitchell (Steve McFadden) and on-off former girlfriend Sonia Jackson (Natalie Cassidy). The character was originally Phil's second cousin once removed, but later became his surrogate son, after it transpired that Jamie had been regularly abused by uncle and guardian Billy (Perry Fenwick), who himself debuted on the show a week before Jamie's first appearance. Elsewhere, Jamie's romance with Sonia faced many complications, ever since she gave birth to Chloe (Jade Sharif) at the age of 15; Jamie always knew he was never the father of Sonia's child, and did not know who the father was, until it was revealed that his friend, Martin Fowler (James Alexandrou), was actually Chloe's father; this was a result of Martin and Sonia's one night stand, prior to her dating Jamie.

As such, Jamie was involved in some high-profile storylines that his family were often involved in. This included Jamie getting protection from Phil and his brother Grant Mitchell (Ross Kemp) when Billy ends up moving into the square; nursing Phil back to health after his criminal job with Grant ended with the Mitchell Brothers plunging their getaway car in the River Thames; losing his virginity to Phil's troublesome stepsister Janine (Charlie Brooks) before his romance with Sonia emerged; sparking friendships with both Sonia's brother Robbie (Dean Gaffney) and Phil's employee Garry Hobbs (Ricky Groves); temporarily dating Sonia's neighbour Zoe Slater (Michelle Ryan) after their relationship nearly collapses; getting embroiled in feuds with Phil's two archenemies, Steve Owen (Martin Kemp) and Dan Sullivan (Craig Fairbrass), that escalated in the Who Shot Phil? scenario; clashing with both Steve's widow Mel Healy (Tamzin Outhwaite) and Martin's older brother Mark (Todd Carty) over the circumstances behind Phil's shooting; comforting Phil and Grant's sister Sam (Kim Medcalf) over her failed relationship with Billy's sworn nemesis Trevor Morgan (Alex Ferns); and helping reclaim the stolen purse that belonged to Phil's mother Peggy (Barbara Windsor).

In the follow-up to "Who Shot Phil?" and its aftermath, Jamie's conflict with Billy improves after the source behind their hostility was disclosed due to Billy having been previously abused in orphanage. At the same time, however, Jamie's relationship with Phil deteriorates after he helps his former girlfriend Lisa Shaw (Lucy Benjamin) escape to Portugal with their daughter Louise. This resulted in Phil beating Jamie up in October 2002, a moment that issued thirty-one complaints to the Broadcasting Standards Commission. Two months later, the character's exit was presented when Jamie – after getting engaged to Sonia – is hospitalised after Martin runs him over in his car; Jamie consequently spends his last days in hospital until he eventually dies of spleen damage on Christmas Day.

When Ryder decided to quit his role, executive producer John Yorke said that the 'door would be left open' for Jamie to return. This was later overturned when Yorke was succeeded by Louise Berridge, who made the choice to kill Jamie off. The decision was highly criticised, and Ryder said it was a shock for him – though he stated that if he had not been killed off, he would not have returned anyway. In 1999, Ryder was nominated three times for Best Newcomer and for his exit storyline was nominated for Best Exit in 2003 at The British Soap Awards.

The EastEnders website describes Jamie as vulnerable, gorgeous, beautiful, a stud, and "the Square's ultimate bit of cockney totty in the late nineties", with "floppy, David Beckham styled locks". Perry Fenwick, who plays Billy, said that they used to call Ryder a "mini David Beckham". In 2003, after Jamie's death, it was reported that a whodunit-style storyline would take place, involving a female character getting pregnant. The possibilities were Sonia carrying Jamie's baby, Kat Slater (Jessie Wallace) being pregnant by Anthony Trueman (Nicholas Bailey) or Sam Mitchell (Kim Medcalf), having Trevor Morgan's (Alex Ferns) child. It was later revealed that Kat was pregnant.

Ryder's decision to quit was announced in March 2002, on which he stated, "I have decided to leave EastEnders after four fantastic years to pursue other projects. It has not been an easy decision but I felt it was time for me to build on the experience the show has given me and play other parts. EastEnders gave me the best opportunity a young actor could have dreamed of and I will always be grateful to them for that." EastEnders's executive producer John Yorke commented, "Jack has made a big contribution to EastEnders playing the much loved Jamie Mitchell. "We will be very sad to see him go but we wish him all the best for his future." It was said that Ryder would leave in November 2002 at the end of his contract, and Yorke said he would appear in episodes until February 2003. The News of the World then reported that Jamie would be killed off in a car accident at Christmas. Yorke wanted Ryder to be able to return, but when he was succeeded by Louise Berridge, the decision was made to kill Jamie off and that a Christmas death would be "gripping". An EastEnders crew member told the newspaper that other members of the cast were shocked that Jamie would be killed as Ryder was popular. They went on to say that "[Ryder] thought it was all amicable but he's bewildered by the whole affair. It's complete madness because he's the one all the girls love and attracts a huge young following. Who's left who's sexy?" Speaking of his departure he told the Daily Mirror, "I was a bit shocked by their decision. When I said he was going to leave, they said they would keep the door open. Then Louise took over as producer and they said they wanted a good exit. It didn't really matter either way to me. I wasn't planning on coming back. At the end of the day, it's their choice. They hired me. Jamie was always having an affair or another fight with Phil and I didn't want to be in a soap for the rest of my life."

Jamie is first seen just weeks after the death of his father, Charlie Mitchell (Charlie Heptinstall), in November 1998. He first receives a visit from Phil Mitchell (Steve McFadden), his second cousin once removed, who is also Jamie's godfather. They steadily bond when Phil comforts Jamie over his father's death and it quickly transpires that Jamie has been regularly abused by his uncle Billy (Perry Fenwick), ever since he became his guardian, following Charlie's passing. Phil learns about this when he witnesses Billy attacking Jamie on his 16th birthday, which prompts Phil to threaten Billy with violence until Jamie stops him. Phil later apologizes and Jamie decides to live with him in Albert Square, the market square in Walford, so he could escape Billy's abuse. Thereupon, Jamie quickly becomes Phil's surrogate son, replacing Phil's son Ben (Morgan Whittle) after the latter had left the square with his mother and Phil's estranged wife Kathy Beale (Gillian Taylforth).