# Vera (TV series)

Vera is a British crime drama television series based on the Vera Stanhope novels by Ann Cleeves. It ran on ITV for 14 years from 1 May 2011 to 2 January 2025 and starred Brenda Blethyn as the principal character, Detective Chief Inspector Vera Stanhope.

## Premise

Vera is a nearly retired detective chief inspector of the fictional Northumberland & City Police, who is obsessive about her work. She plods along in a dishevelled state but has a calculating mind and despite her irascible personality, she cares deeply about her work and colleagues. She often proves her superior skills by picking up small errors in her team members' thought processes. Vera forms a close relationship with sergeants Joe Ashworth and Aiden Healy.

## Production

The series is filmed in Newcastle upon Tyne and throughout Northumberland, County Durham and North Yorkshire in North East England. Locations include Gateshead, South Shields, North Shields, Whitley Bay, Amble, Warkworth, Alnmouth, Bamburgh, and Holy Island. The farmhouse used for the exterior shots of Vera's home is located on the Snook, part of Holy Island at 55°41′10″N 001°50′29″W﻿ / ﻿55.68611°N 1.84139°W﻿ / 55.68611; -1.84139 or grid reference NU1006543635.
"Hidden Depths", "Telling Tales" and "The Crow Trap" from the first series, as well as "Silent Voices" from the second series, are based on novels of the same names by Ann Cleeves. The episode "Sand Dancers" from the second series was due to be broadcast on 13 May 2012. However, the episode was pulled from the schedule as its storyline was about a soldier's death in Afghanistan and it coincided with news of two servicemen dying there.
In August 2012, Vera was renewed for a third series of four episodes, with both Brenda Blethyn and David Leon confirmed as returning for the new series. On 5 June 2014, ITV announced that a fifth series had been commissioned but that David Leon would not be returning. Kenny Doughty was unveiled as his successor. Letitia Knight was announced as executive producer for this series. Cush Jumbo returned to the main cast following her two-episode guest stint in series two, while Lisa Hammond joined the cast as newcomer Helen Milton.
In March 2015, ITV announced that the show had been renewed for a sixth series, with filming commencing in June. The third episode was announced to be an adaptation of the novel The Moth Catcher, which was set to be published in September 2015. Noof McEwan joined the cast following the departure of Cush Jumbo. On 14 January 2020, while attending the TCA Press Tour, Blethyn confirmed that Vera was renewed for an eleventh series. Production for series 11 began in April 2020 and new episodes began airing in 2021. In March 2023, ITV announced that the show had been renewed for a thirteenth series, with filming commencing in mid-May. It aired in January 2024 and featured the return of Joe Ashworth, as well as former Hollyoaks actress Rhiannon Clements as DC Stephanie Duncan.
The fourteenth and final series comprised the final two episodes and aired in January 2025.

## Cast

* Brenda Blethyn as DCI Vera Stanhope (series 1–14)
* David Leon as DS (later DI) Joe Ashworth (series 1–4, 13–14)
* Jon Morrison as DC Kenny Lockhart (series 1–14)
* Wunmi Mosaku as DC Holly Lawson (series 1–2)
* Paul Ritter as Dr. Billy Cartwright (series 1–3)
* Cush Jumbo as DC Bethany Whelan (series 2, 5–6)
* Sonya Cassidy as Celine Ashworth (series 2–4)
* Riley Jones as PC (later DC) Mark Edwards (series 3–14; guest series 1–2)
* Clare Calbraith as DC Rebecca Shepherd (series 3–4; guest series 2)
* Kingsley Ben-Adir as Dr. Marcus Sumner (series 4–6, 8)
* Kenny Doughty as DS Aiden Healy (series 5–12)
* Lisa Hammond as IO Helen Milton (series 5–7)
* Noof McEwan as DC Hicham Cherradi (series 6–7)
* Christopher Colquhoun as Dr. Anthony Carmichael (series 7)
* Steve Evets as PC George Wooten (series 7–9)
* Ibinabo Jack as DC Jacqueline Williams (series 8–12)
* Paul Kaye as Dr. Malcolm Donahue (series 9–12)
* Sarah Kameela Impey as Dr. Paula Bennett (series 12–14)
* Rhiannon Clements as DC Stephanie Duncan (series 13–14)
* Shobna Gulati as Chief Superintendent Khalon (series 14)
* Marley Emma Sage as Young Vera Stanhope (series 14)
* Stevie Raine as Hector Stanhope (series 14)

## Episodes

| Series | Episodes | Episodes | Originally released | Originally released | Average UK viewers (millions) |
| Series | Episodes | Episodes | First released | Last released | Average UK viewers (millions) |
| 1 | 4 | 4 | 1 May 2011 (2011-05-01) | 22 May 2011 (2011-05-22) | 6.60 |
| 2 | 4 | 4 | 22 April 2012 (2012-04-22) | 3 June 2012 (2012-06-03) | 6.37 |
| 3 | 4 | 4 | 25 August 2013 (2013-08-25) | 15 September 2013 (2013-09-15) | 6.53 |
| 4 | 4 | 4 | 27 April 2014 (2014-04-27) | 18 May 2014 (2014-05-18) | 6.42 |
| 5 | 4 | 4 | 5 April 2015 (2015-04-05) | 26 April 2015 (2015-04-26) | 6.19 |
| 6 | 4 | 4 | 31 January 2016 (2016-01-31) | 21 February 2016 (2016-02-21) | 7.88 |
| 7 | 4 | 4 | 19 March 2017 (2017-03-19) | 9 April 2017 (2017-04-09) | 8.07 |
| 8 | 4 | 4 | 7 January 2018 (2018-01-07) | 28 January 2018 (2018-01-28) | 9.03 |
| 9 | 4 | 4 | 13 January 2019 (2019-01-13) | 3 February 2019 (2019-02-03) | 8.48 |
| 10 | 4 | 4 | 12 January 2020 (2020-01-12) | 2 February 2020 (2020-02-02) | 8.30 |
| 11 | 6 | 6 | 29 August 2021 (2021-08-29) | 22 January 2023 (2023-01-22) | 6.97 |
| 12 | 5 | 4 | 29 January 2023 (2023-01-29) | 19 February 2023 (2023-02-19) | 6.02 |
| 12 | 5 | 1 | 26 December 2023 (2023-12-26) | 26 December 2023 (2023-12-26) | 5.71 |
| 13 | 3 | 3 | 7 January 2024 (2024-01-07) | 21 January 2024 (2024-01-21) | 6.66 |
| 14 | 2 | 2 | 1 January 2025 (2025-01-01) | 2 January 2025 (2025-01-02) | 6.24 |
| Special | Special | Special | 3 January 2025 (2025-01-03) | 3 January 2025 (2025-01-03) | 3.11 |

## Home releases

| Series | Format | Release date | Release date | Release date | Release date |
| Series | Format | Region 1 | Region 2 (UK) | Region 2 (Germany) | Region 4/B |
| 1 | DVD (individual series sets) | 30 August 2011 | 23 May 2011 | 4 April 2014 | 9 August 2012 |
| 2 | DVD (individual series sets) | 6 November 2012 | 21 May 2012 | 24 July 2015 | 3 December 2014 |
| 3 | DVD (individual series sets) | 28 January 2014 | 16 September 2013 | 4 September 2015 | 3 December 2014 |
| 4 | DVD (individual series sets) | 28 October 2014 | 19 May 2014 | 19 February 2016 | 3 December 2014 |
| 5 | DVD (individual series sets) | 22 September 2015 | 11 May 2015 | 3 February 2017 | 9 September 2015 |
| 6 | DVD (individual series sets) | 28 June 2016 | 7 March 2016 | 2 February 2018 | 13 April 2016 |
| 7 | DVD (individual series sets) | 24 October 2017 | 17 April 2017 | 7 May 2018 | 13 September 2017 |
| 8 | DVD (individual series sets) | 4 December 2018 | 26 February 2018 | 27 September 2019 | 8 May 2019 |
| 9 | DVD (individual series sets) | 7 January 2020 | 25 February 2019 | 14 February 2020 | 5 August 2020 |
| 10 | DVD (individual series sets) | 5 January 2021 | 2 March 2020 | TBA | 4 November 2020 |
| 11 | DVD (individual series sets) | TBA | 27 February 2023 | TBA | 31 August 2022 |
| 12 | DVD (individual series sets) | TBA | 20 March 2023 | TBA | 17 April 2024 |
| 13 | DVD (individual series sets) | TBA | 26 February 2024 | TBA | 11 September 2024 |
| 14 | DVD (individual series sets) | TBA | 10 February 2025 | TBA | TBA |
| 1–2 | DVD (multiple series sets) | No release | 13 August 2012 | No release | No release |
| 1–3 | DVD (multiple series sets) | No release | 16 September 2013 | 29 January 2021 | No release |
| 1–4 | DVD (multiple series sets) | No release | 25 August 2014 | No release | No release |
| 1–5 | DVD (multiple series sets) | No release | 5 October 2015 | No release | 9 September 2015 |
| 1–6 | DVD (multiple series sets) | No release | No release | No release | 14 September 2016 |
| 4–6 | DVD (multiple series sets) | No release | No release | 30 September 2022 | No release |
| 1–7 | DVD (multiple series sets) | 23 October 2018 | No release | No release | 13 September 2017 |
| 1–8 | DVD (multiple series sets) | No release | 19 March 2018 | No release | 8 May 2019 |
| 1–9 | DVD (multiple series sets) | No release | 25 February 2019 | No release | 5 August 2020 |
| 7–9 | DVD (multiple series sets) | No release | No release | No release | 6 December 2023 |
| 1–10 | DVD (multiple series sets) | No release | 9 March 2020 | No release | 4 November 2020 |
| 1–11 | DVD (multiple series sets) | No release | 27 February 2023 | No release | 31 August 2022 |
| 1–13 | DVD (multiple series sets) | No release | 26 February 2024 | No release | No release |
| 1–14 | DVD (multiple series sets) | No release | 10 February 2025 | No release | TBA |
| 1–6 | Blu-ray | No release | No release | No release | 29 April 2025 |