Brenda Blethyn quits Vera as filming begins on the final series

Brenda Blethyn has quit Vera after more than a decade starring in the long-running ITV detective show.

The award-winning actress will film her last season this summer, which will bring more stories of murder mysteries from the North East in the form of two 120″ episodes.

Brenda Blethyn said: 

“Working on Vera has been a joy from beginning to end and I’m sad to be saying Cheerio. But I am so proud of our achievements over the last fourteen years. I’ll be forever grateful to the wonderful Ann Cleeves who created Vera, and to Elaine Collins who saw fit to cast me in the role. The Producers, dream cast and crew have been fabulous and I’m going to miss them, but I won’t forget their huge talent, the camaraderie, laughter or kindness we shared nor the friendship of the people of the north east and our fans worldwide. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.”

One of ITV1’s most popular dramas, Vera is based on Ann Cleeves’ critically-acclaimed Vera Stanhope series of crime novels. In 2021 Blethyn received the Rose d’Or Lifetime Achievement Award in part for her portrayal of ITV’s longest-running female detective.

The series has been on-air since 2011 and past series are available to stream on ITVX.

Vera is one of the bestselling dramas across Europe, the Middle East and Asia. The series has had a positive impact on the North East Tourism which was celebrated by a win at the 2019 RTS North East and Border Awards.

ITV drama commissioner Huw Kennair-Jones said:

“Led by the incomparable Brenda Blethyn, from the moment Vera arrived on our screens in 2011 audiences have been enthralled by her many adventures. And whilst we’re sad she’s hanging up her Mac, we’re hugely grateful for 14 brilliant series. Everyone at ITV would like to thank Brenda, Ann Cleeves, Silverprint Pictures and the amazing cast and crew that have made Vera such a continued success.”

The show is produced by Silverprint Pictures, part of ITV Studios.

The company’s creative director, Kate Bartlett, said:

“It is the end of an era and has been an extraordinary journey over fourteen amazing series of Vera. So many wonderful and talented people have been involved in the making of Vera across all the series, but none of us would be here without two incredible women: firstly, the absolutely extraordinary talent of the inimitable Brenda Blethyn. She is brilliant as DCI Vera Stanhope, a truly iconic character of our times. And – of course – the amazing Ann Cleeves, author of the original novels and creator of DCI Vera Stanhope. We will all be very sad to say goodbye to Brenda and everyone involved in making the show.”

To date there have been 54 episodes of Vera with next year’s two final instalments bringing the total to 56.