Eileen Davidson will be returning to The Young and the Restless for a three-day arc storyline beginning on Friday, December 28 and running through Wednesday, January 3.

The 48-year-old soap opera veteran will portraying her signature character, Ashley Abbott.

Davidson was cast on the long-running drama in 1982. As the original Ashley, Davidson was an integral part of show. After seven years of playing the character, though, she left The Young and the Restless in February 1989, which prompted the producers to continue featuring the character with a look-alike actress.

Following several appearances on primetime TV, Davidson returned to the soap world in the the role of Kelly Capwell on Santa Barbara; she then left and landed the part od Kristen Blake on Days of Our Lives in May 1993.

Five years later, Davidson came back to The Young and the Restless again... only to be released from the series due to lack of storylines for her character. She was last seen as Ashley on January 11.

In a surprise move three months later, Davidson signed a three-year contract with sister soap opera, The Bold and the Beautiful, once more portraying Ashley Abbott, a role she continues to wow viewers with to this day.

Matt Richenthal is the Editor in Chief of TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter and on Google+.