ITV Vera star Brenda Blethyn's next move exposed as she makes plea to bosses


Brenda Blethyn has made a plea to bosses as she eyes up a new role following her sad exit from Vera.

Earlier this year, Brenda announced she was stepping down from her role as Detective Inspector Vera Stanhope after the upcoming season.

In a sad message, she announced to fans: "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."

She added: "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."

Vera with her team
Vera with her team -Credit:ITV

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After the news broke, fans were devastated to see Brenda leave the role and urged for a sequel or prequel to carry on with the series, but nothing has yet been announced about a possible continuation.

Brenda, meanwhile, has moved onto another acting project - and has eyed up a new acting goal.

"I'm getting on a bit, so I had to stop doing Vera. But I’m still acting – I’ve just finished a film. I’d be tempted to do a soap, but nobody has asked me," she told the Daily Star, "I love soaps and watch Emmerdale and Corrie.

Vera is ending after 14 series
Vera is ending after 14 series

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"I like them both for different reasons –they both have merit. The actors on all the soaps work so hard. I don’t know how they do it."

Brenda recently finished filming the final series, and took to Twitter at the time to share her feelings. She wrote: "Travelling home after finishing filming of Series 14 of VERA. Tired and emotional."

Fans rushed to the comments to pay tribute to the show, with one writing: "Looking forward to series 14 but I am really going to miss Vera."

A second added: "Vera is that rare and special series that I can watch over and over again & still enjoy it every time. I'm looking forward to watching the new series but so sad it's the last. Hats off to you & the whole cast."

A third penned: "Oh wow, the end of an era. Looking forward to the final series but tinged with sadness.

"Thank you for the care with which you translated Vera from the books to the screen. It has also been a great tourism boost for the North East."