Vera star Brenda Blethyn’s life off screen - career, awards, husband and homes
Fans of ITV Cosy Crime are rejoicing over the return of hit series Vera - after star actress Brenda Blethen hinted she was ready to quit the show.
The long-running crime drama has been on air since 2011 and is now in its thirteenth season - with an impressive 51 episodes already available to watch. But 77-year-old Brenda, who plays the titular character DCI Vera Stanhope, had left fans fearing the show would be cancelled after season twelve as she hinted she was getting too tired of all the long filming days.
She told the Mirror last year: “When we finish filming, I always say, 'I really don't think I can do this anymore'. Filming usually means six months away from home – and in 2022 it was the best part of 10 months. But then I have a rest, get my appetite back and change my mind."
Now fans will be able to start feasting on season thirteen of the show - as it starts airing on ITV on Sunday 7 January 2024. Here we look at Brenda’s life away from the ITV drama to learn a little more about the star behind the on-screen detective.
Brenda Blethyn plays DCI Vera Stanhope in the ITV drama, Vera (ITV)Who is Brenda Blethyn?
Brenda Blethyn is a British actress who was born and raised in Ramsgate, Kent. She was born in February 1946 and is the youngest of nine children. Her mother, Louisa, was a maid and her father, William, was a chauffeur who worked as a mechanic before World War II.
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Brenda was introduced to the magic of acting by her parents who would take her to the cinema as a child. She enjoyed performing in an amateur dramatics club - but went on to study at the Guilford School of Acting and her career soon took off after graduation as she won roles on stage, landing parts with the Royal National Theatre in the mid-1970s.
After winning the London Critics' Circle Theatre Award for Best Supporting Actress in 1980 for her performance in the Nell Dunn play Steaming, she landed her first on-screen role in the play Grown Ups as part of the BBC's Playhouse strand - and directed by Mike Leigh. She then starred in a range of TV shows and films including the political satire show Yes Minister, Roald Dahl’s The Witches, and Joe Wright’s Oscar-nominated production of Pride & Prejudice. She has starred in ITV’s Vera since 2011.
She won Best Actress at Cannes, a BAFTA, and a Golden Globe, as well as an Oscar nomination for Best Actress for her role as Cynthia Rose Purley in the 1996 drama Secrets & Lies - and was also appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to drama in the 2003 New Year Honours.
The actress was born Brenda Bottle and took the last name of her first husband, Alan James Blethyn, for her stage name (Getty Images)
Brenda is now married to Michael Mayhew (Getty Images)Is Brenda Blethyn married?
Brenda has been married twice - having first married a graphic designer named Alan James Blethyn in 1964. While the marriage did not last and ended in 1973, the actress kept her first husband’s last name as her stage name - replacing her maiden name of Brenda Bottle.
She started dating British art director Michael Mayhew in 1975 - and they were together for decades before getting married. The couple finally tied the knot in 2010 - after deciding it would be ‘the sensible thing to do’.
Brenda explained to the Radio Times in 2021: "We were getting on a bit and it seemed the sensible thing to do. Neither of us were going anywhere so it just presents a problem if one of us pops our clogs.”
Where does Brenda Blethyn live?
Brenda and her husband Michael live mainly in Kent - with the actress ending up spending months away from home to film Vera in the North East of England as it is filmed in Newcastle upon Tyne and throughout Northumberland. The couple live in their Kent home with their beloved cockapoo dog, Jack.
The couple also have a home in London - and Michael ended up spending part of lockdown in the capital away from the star. Brenda explained previously: "My husband was in London and he couldn’t come down, so we were apart.
“Apart from living in London I also have a home in Ramsgate [and] I was there gathering my last bits and pieces to take up to Newcastle with me for filming when the lockdown happened, so I couldn’t go home.”
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