Vera returns for two final appearances on ITV

The end is near for Vera…

The two-part farewell airs later this week as Brenda Blethyn makes an emotional return for the fourteenth and final series as DCI Vera Stanhope. The stories combine murderous intrigue with heart and soul in Vera’s personal journey.

“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.” – Brenda Blethyn

In this final series, the personal and professional collide like never before when the sudden prospect of promotion confronts Vera with a life-affecting change. What will this mean for Vera? And what does it mean for her team?

DI Joe Ashworth (David Leon) continues to grow in his new role, exploring his own investigative style. But despite his dogged dedication, it doesn’t take Vera long to recognise something’s not right with Joe. Struck by grief following the death of his dad, can Vera get through to him before his work seriously suffers? With all of this to contend with, Vera must also decide if her trusted team of diligent detectives, Kenny (Jon Morrison), Mark (Riley Jones), Steph (Rhiannon Clements) and pathologist Dr Paula Bennett (Sarah Kameela Impey) are ready to stand on their own feet.

The first episode, to air on New Year’s Day, we join Vera when she is called to the banks of the Tyne after the body of a young delivery driver is discovered by morning anglers. As Vera begins her investigation, she discovers the victim had recently been released from prison after serving time for GBH. Could this have something to do with his untimely demise? Has our former inmatebeen
served cold justice? Or does his death run deeper? A broken relationship, secret love, grudges, regret, fraud…a complicated picture begins to emerge.

As if this wasn’t enough to unpick, Vera is tasked with investigating a high-profile cold case. A former steel union man has had his twenty-year conviction for killing his wife overturned, meaning her killer is still at large. With two high profile cases to investigate, Vera has a huge amount to deal with and needs her team to be on their top game to close these cases. But at what cost?

In the soulful final episode, the violent death of a bright young student is next for Vera to unravel after a body is found beneath a mysterious local monument known as “The Dark Wives” in a village from Vera’s childhood. Gang related? Ritualistic? One thing is for certain the body was moved there. But by who? Vera soon learns that our student was a volunteer at a local children’s home, and one of their residents, a young girl, Chole, has gone missing overnight.

Surely the two cases are related? Well, that’s what Vera wants to find out.

The investigation spreads far and wide across the sprawling Northumberland landscape, and Vera tests the team like never before as they search for the truth. As the investigation ramps up, Vera and the team find themselves playing cat and mouse with their killer at an annual ‘Witch Hunt’ festival in a small village from Vera’s past. An exciting and intense conclusion thrusts Vera once more into the path of danger and once again shows us why she’s the best. Ultimately, Vera has a decision to make about her future, and the deep connection with missing Chloe prompts poignant reflections on her childhood spent with her father Hector, forcing her to consolidate the sheer scale of her achievements so far.

“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. On that last day of filming for Vera I couldn’t help thinking, ‘Oh, I’m making a mistake here. Why oh why, Brenda?’

“Come March when I would normally be packing my bag to go back up north to film another series of Vera, I’ll probably be regretting my decision. But right here and right now, it’s the right one for me and my family.” – Brenda Blethyn

Vera airs on ITV1 and STV at 8 pm on January 1st and 2nd, followed by the companion documentary, Vera: farewell pet, on January 3 at 9 pm