How old is Vera actress? The age of the detective in ITV drama and reason for show ending

The two final episodes of the detective drama aired this month
-Credit:ITV


Vera has been on our TV screens for over a decade and over the years has had huge success with a large fan base. Unfortunately, the final series of the crime show aired this month after ITV announced it would be ending.

The two final episodes of the detective drama aired on January 1 and 2 this month. Millions tuned in for the final scenes as speculation about Vera's character was rife online. DCI Stanhope didn't have a sad ending as many had predicted, instead she left our screens after packing her belongings and saying goodbye to her Northumberland & City Police office.

Vera has been one of the most famous TV Detectives, attracting fans not only in the UK but from every corner of the globe including America and Australia. Series 14 was the final series with the show concluding because Brenda Blethyn, who has portrayed the title character since the beginning, decided to leave.

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Brenda Blethyn is now 78-years-old and wants to spend more time with her family and dog. When she made her debut as Vera Stanhope in 2011 she was 64.

In an interview with ITV, Brenda said: "It was a lovely summer back in 2023. And I came to realise I hadn’t had a summer with my husband for 14 years. Naturally I missed my family. And my dog Jack, although he was with me in the North East, but I didn’t see him much because I was working all day."

The actress continued: "Fourteen series of working on Vera is pretty good going. I wasn’t actually going to do any more afte rseries thirteen, but of course ITV said they needed to wind the series up. So I said, ‘Oh go on then, I’ll do a couple more episodes."

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She didn't find the decision an easy one to make and was worried she would live to regret it. The Vera star added: "So I’m not retiring. Maybe semi-retired. I don’t want to be doing jobs which means going away for long periods of time. I’ve done that for the last 14 years. But, there again, never say never."

The actress said on that last day of filming for Vera she couldn’t help thinking that she was making a mistake, but admitted "right here, and right now, it's the right one for me and my family."