ITV detective show Vera to come to an end after 14 series as Brenda Blethyn leaves

ITV has announced that much-loved crime television series Vera will be coming to an end, after 14 series. 

The show, which began in 2011, saw actress Brenda Blethyn take on the iconic role of Detective Chief Inspector Vera Stanhope in the long-running drama as she solves crimes across the North East. 

Vera has run for 13 series so far, but will come to an end in 2025, with the cast set to film their final scenes for series 14 soon.

As reported by the BBC, 78-year-old Blethyn will be sad to leave the show behind, after being a part of Vera for 14 years. 

She said: “"Working on Vera has been a joy from beginning to end.”

"I'm sad to be saying cheerio. But I am so proud of our achievements over the last 14 years.”

Speaking of her fellow cast members, as well as the crew that work on Vera, Blethyn said: "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."

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Vera has filmed scenes across various locations in the North East, including Newcastle, Gateshead, Sunderland, Whitley Bay, Bamburgh, Amble and Holy Island.

As the ITV series is based on the Vera Stanhope book series by Ann Cleeves, Blethyn also wanted to thank the author, saying she would be “forever grateful” to Cleeves for creating the character of Vera.

Executive producer of Vera, Kate Bartlett said: "It is the end of an era and has been an extraordinary journey over 14 amazing series of Vera.

"So many wonderful and talented people have been involved in the making of Vera across all the series, but none of us would be here without two incredible women: firstly, the absolutely extraordinary talent of the inimitable Brenda Blethyn.

She is brilliant as DCI Vera Stanhope, a truly iconic character of our times. And - of course - the amazing Ann Cleeves, author of the original novels.

"We will all be very sad to say goodbye to Brenda and everyone involved in making the show."

Vera’s 14th and final series will be made up of two 120-minutes episodes, and is set to air on ITV next year.