Brenda Blethyn reveals reason why Vera couldn't be killed off after ITV series ended
Share:
Millions of crime drama fans breathed a sigh of relief when DCI Vera Stanhope strolled off into the sunset at the end of the show’s last ever outing. Now Brenda Blethyn has told how she supported her character of 14 years living to tell the tale, while also revealing she suffered from “imposter syndrome” in the role and feels like she’s “never cracked” Vera’s north-east accent.
“I didn’t want Vera killed off because I suspected that she’d be living on in the books,” Brenda explains in ITV ’s behind-the-scenes documentary Vera, Farewell Pet. “She’s a sensible woman, Vera, she knows when it’s time to call it a day. In the same way Brenda Blethyn knows when it’s time to call it a day. You just sense when the time is right.”.
But the actress, who has told how she decided to retire from the role in a bid to reclaim her summers at the age of 78, admitted: “On the last day I felt very emotional. It’s her packing up her stuff and backing out of the office and I could have cried to be honest. It’s so bittersweet because I’ve loved every minute of this job.”.
The last ever scene of series 14, which was based on Ann Cleeves’ 11th novel The Dark Wives, saw Vera walking across a beach with a smile on her face. “Well done Brenda, it’s a beautiful shot,” a crew member was heard to call out. Having grown-up in Ramsgate, Kent, Brenda said she’d largely based her accent on that of the show’s props man Geoff Blackburn, who’d always help her out if she ever got stuck. “But I don’t think actually that I have ever cracked it,” she confessed.
