Multi award-winning Brenda Blethyn stars as the unorthodox but brilliant DCI Vera Stanhope, investigating more chilling crimes only she can solve. Starring BAFTA and Golden Globe-winning actress Brenda Blethyn as the unorthodox but brilliantly perceptive DCI Vera Stanhope. Vera is inspired by the bestselling novels and characters created by acclaimed author Ann Cleeves, recipient of the Crime Writers’ Association’s Diamond Dagger award, the highest honour in British crime writing.