Vera star Brenda Blethyn almost quit series after co-star exit

A familiar face will be back to replace him, though, in the form of David Leon as Joe Ashworth.

The Vera favourite was last seen in season 4, but thankfully is returning - and it's lucky he did, because Brenda Blethyn was close to quitting herself.

Speaking to press including RadioTimes.com, Blethyn opened up on losing Doughty from the series.

She said: "After we filmed The Rising Tide at the end of 2022, I didn’t want to do any more without Kenny Doughty, who had decided to leave.

"But I said, 'I’ll think about it, if you can see if David Leon is available to return as Joe Ashworth.' And so they did, and here I am.

"I was broken-hearted when David left after season 4, and equally overjoyed when I heard he was coming back, as the relationship between Vera and Joe worked so well. They have all of that early history together.

"I wouldn’t have continued if David had not agreed to come back. I just didn’t want to start another board game with somebody else when I know I’m not going to do many more. And who would want to do it, anyway?"

Vera is available to watch on ITVX while seasons are also available on BritBox – you can sign up for a 7-day free BritBox trial here. You can also purchase instalments from any series on Amazon Prime Video. You can buy the first of Ann Cleeves's Vera novels online.

To find out what else is on, check out our TV Guide and Streaming Guide or visit our dedicated Drama hub.

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