In the bleak MIDWINTER

BRENDA BLETHYN shares her case notes on the first Christmas edition of Vera

-  HANNAH DAVIES

VERA NEW BOXING DAY, 8PM, ITV1 DRAMA

Fans of ITVi's Vera are set to receive a magical gift this festive season as the longrunning Northumberland-set crime drama gets its first Christmas special! Inspired by bestselling author Ann Cleeves' 10th Vera Stanhope novel, 2022's The Rising Tide, the plot sees the no-nonsense DCI (played by Brenda Blethyn) tasked with solving a midwinter mystery on her home stomping ground of Holy Island after a scandal-hit TV star is found dead in concerning circumstances.

Here, Brenda, 77, who has portrayed the character since the show began in 2011, gives us her take on this latest complex case...

Are you excited that Vera has got its first Christmas special, Brenda?

Yes, I’ve always wanted to have one, and this adaptation of Ann Cleeves’ book The Rising Tide is set against the backdrop of the run-up to Christmas, so there are quite a lot of Christmas trees and festive decorations in the show. There was a really jolly feeling filming it, too.

Is DCI Stanhope a fan of the festive season?