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DCI Vera Stanhope finally gets major recognition in last season: "It's taken 14 years"

It's about time!

The cast of Vera gathered by a river

SILVERPRINT PICTURES FOR ITV

Published: Thursday, 26 December 2024 at 7:00 pm

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The 14th and final season of Vera is almost upon us, and while we know some of what's to come in the anticipated episodes, there's also a rather special plot development for DCI Vera Stanhope in the pipeline.

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Speaking to ITV in a press pack for the final episodes, Brenda Blethyn said: "The new chief superintendent is rather severe on camera. But Shobna [Gulati] and I couldn’t stop giggling. In between takes we were laughing our heads off.

"At the start of the first film, Chief Supt Khalon offers Vera a promotion. It’s about time! It’s taken 14 years for Vera to be offered promotion. She’s been the same rank throughout."

As Blethyn says, it's only been over a decade that Vera has been working tirelessly away on our screens, so a promotion is certainly what fans have been waiting for.

Brenda Blethyn in Vera, with her back turned to the camera, walking along a beach

Brenda Blethyn in Vera. Silverprint Pictures for ITV

In the final two episodes, entitled Inside and The Dark Wives, the drama will not only include some mind-bending murder mysteries, but will also have a focus on Vera's own personal life.

The synopsis for the final episodes was revealed back in October, and teases plenty to come around our titular character's own journey through the years.

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According to the synopsis: "In the first episode, DCI Vera Stanhope is called to the banks of the Tyne where the body of a young man has been discovered by some anglers.

"A tangled web of a broken relationship, secret love, grudges, regret and fraud begins to emerge – has our former inmate been served cold justice, or does his death run deeper?

"The final episode brings Vera back to a familiar place when a body is found at the foot of legendary local stones The Dark Wives – with memories of childhood in the background, Vera must work hard to uncover the mystery of why a bright young student would be violently attacked and left so far from home.

"This poignant episode weaves together past and present and makes for a compelling and emotional farewell."

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The final instalment, The Dark Wives, will have a specific focus on Vera's childhood, according to executive producer Will Nicholson, who previously revealed: "Vera’s relationship with her father Hector was quite complex and has shaped her. She had to grow up fast when her mother died.

"But through those tough times - both for Vera and her father - she loved her father. But his life was not the life that she wanted to lead. We do learn more about her childhood. I think it’s a full circle for Vera."

Vera season 14 will arrive on Wednesday 1st January at 8pm on ITV1. Previous episodes are available to watch on ITVX.

You can also purchase instalments from any series on Amazon Prime Video. You can buy the first of Ann Cleeves's Vera novels now.

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To find out what else is on, check out our TV Guide and Streaming Guide or visit our dedicated Drama hub. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.

Authors

Black and white cut-out portrait headshot of Morgan Cormack, smiling against a lime green background

Morgan CormackDrama Writer

Morgan Cormack is a Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering everything drama-related on TV and streaming. She previously worked at Stylist as an Entertainment Writer. Alongside her past work in content marketing and as a freelancer, she possesses a BA in English Literature.

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