Vera star Brenda Blethyn reveals ‘heartbreak’ at beloved co-star’s exit from show
VERA actress Brenda Blethyn has opened up about the sadness she felt at her co-star's departure from the show.
The leading lady, known for playing DCI Vera Stanhope in the long-running ITV drama, admitted she 'never thought she would get over' the departure of her former co-star David Leon.
She admitted she was left heartbroken over the change in a frank conversation with the Mirror.
David played Vera's right-hand man DS Joe Ashworth in the popular show but quit his role almost ten years ago in 2014.
Speaking of him and his departure, Brenda said: "I never thought I'd get over David going – that broke my heart."
Brenda has since been accompanied on the programme by Kenny Doughty who plays DS Aidan Healy.
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She admitted that Kenny helped to fill the hole in her heart following David's exit and praised him for being 'a joy' to work with on set.
The actress divulged: "But Kenny is a joy. He's my mate.
"He's great company on set along with the rest of the cast, the crew and the directors."
Vera returned to screens following a haphazard eleventh series which saw missing episodes.
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It returned to screens Sunday night with the final two episodes of that series left to air as well as four brand new episodes labelled as series 12 that were shot in the summer.
Brenda - who shot to fame as an actress in 1976 - never thought she'd end up in the industry because she started off her career as a typist.
But after randomly entering a drama competition, she decided to attend drama school and has never looked back.
