BBC Breakfast: Ann Cleeves talks about Vera tv adaptation
Brenda Blethyn confessed to feeling 'rather choked up' as she officially bid goodbye to her iconic character Vera at a special event in London.
Fans, media and some of her co-stars gathered at the renowned British Film Institute on Tuesday night for the farewell. The BAFTA-winning actress first donned the now-iconic fishing hat and trench coat ensemble for her on-screen persona back in 2011.
She starred alongside original sidekick David Leon in the pilot episode Hidden Depths, which also featured a brief appearance from a young Sam Fender as the ITV show's inaugural murder victim.
Fast forward thirteen years, and ITV executives announced earlier this year that the globally popular drama Vera would conclude with its 14th and final series. The last episodes were filmed across the North East during the summer.
Brenda appeared genuinely moved at various points during Tuesday night's Vera - End of an Era event, where she was joined by author Ann Cleeves and host Emma Kennedy.
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During the 95-minute special, Brenda and Ann revisited some of the most iconic moments from the 13 series of Vera to date.
This included Vera's first-ever appearance, a dramatic scene from series two where David's character heroically jumps into a lake to save a woman from a car that had plunged off a cliff, and one of Vera's classic interrogations, reports Chronicle Live.
A clip from the opening episode of series 6 was also featured, showing the aftermath of Bethany's death, played by Cush Jumbo.
Following this, Brenda confessed she was feeling emotional, appearing overwhelmed by the outpouring of praise from audience members who had the opportunity to ask her and Ann questions.
David, Vera's sidekick, was present along with fellow cast members Riley Jones and Sara Kameela Impey.
He discussed the 'family' dynamic amongst the Vera cast and crew and shared his experience of returning to direct an episode after leaving his role as Joe Ashworth at the end of series 4.
Speaking about the long-running show coming to an end, actress Brenda Blethyn told ITV: "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.”
It's not yet known when the final series of Vera will air, although it's expected to be in 2025.
Vera is available to watch on ITVX
