"Vera" - British detective show starring Brenda Blethyn

OK, I guess I'm the only one watching -- but on the off chance that someone else is interested, episode 1 of Season 11 is now available.

And Brenda Blethyn also has a new sitcom: "Kate and Koji" which is decent.

There are quite a few American fans of British television here. Thanks for the heads-up as to the new season of "Vera." I still pine for Joe (David Leon).

I love it. The first few seasons had a very handsome actor named David Leon as her sidekick.

I like it though “Shetland” - another series based on the books of Ann Cleeves - is better.

I like Brenda Blethyn and I love a good British mystery but I gave up after a season or two. It's too dour and dreary for me.

And, yeah, I believe in suspension of disbelief when watching shows, to a degree, but Blethyn is waaaaay too old to still be a cop.

Most cops are retired by the time they're in the their mid 50s. Brenda Blethyn is 75.

R3 David Leon also played Hermolaus in Oliver Stone's awful Alexander.

Took me a while to get into it, but now enjoy the series. Blethyn's character DOES require some suspension of belief, but grows on you after you get comfortable with her. I find her Geordie accent charming and down home.

The look of the series IS dark, a bit grimy, and they've seemingly saved a lot of money on costumes. It appears all the actors have come on set in their own clothes.

Her sitcom mentioned above, "Kate and Koji," is very fluff and enjoyable, and the characters unique. The 'unfiltered' lines that come out of Blethyn's mouth are very funny, and well-delivered like the pro she is.

[quote]There are quite a few American fans of British television here.

That's the understatement of the year.

R8 Pretty much all we watch are endless reruns of Midsomer Murders, Rosemary & Thyme, Poirot and both Marples.

Oh, and we're re-watching Mapp & Lucia for the 89th time...the good one from the 80s not the more recent bad one.

Sorry but I just can’t stand Brenda Blethyn‘s incredibly whiny voice and irritating mannerisms. I wanted to like this but she sinks the ship for me.

Old Mother Blethyn is unbelievable as a police officer but this David Leon looks interesting

Sadly R11, David Leon doesn't show skin. I think I've only seen him shirtless in one show early in his career.

R12: IIRC, David Leon was shirtless in Guy Ritchie's hilarious "RocknRolla" with Gerard Butler, Idris Elba, Tom Hardy, Mark Strong, Tom Wilkinson and Thandie Newton. See if you can spot Leon in this bit of of out-of-character casting.

I wonder why David Leon got special billing with his photo in his episodes, while his replacement (Kenny Doughty) just gets lumped in with the rest of the co-stars (although on his own page.) He's actually done almost twice as many episodes than Leon. Was Leon a bigger name when he started?

And what's the deal with Mark's (Riley Jones) hair? He was a cute blonde for most of the series, but in Season 11 he shows up with a shaved head?

I've never been anywhere in the UK outside of London, but I always assumed the northeast (where "Vera" is set) was kind of bleak and depressing. But it actually seems quite nice in this show. And Newcastle seems like a much larger city than I'd expected.

[quote] I wonder why David Leon got special billing with his photo in his episodes, while his replacement (Kenny Doughty) just gets lumped in with the rest

We, along with the rest of the world, are seduced by Leon’s hotness. Also - he showed us his dong.

Doughty has a dough bod. Good actor though- and cheap!

Love this show!!! I’m working my way through season 2 right now and will watch all of the seasons I have on Prime (oddly, a few seasons are not purchasable on streaming??). But I love the ambiance, the shots of Northern England, and Blethyn’s snark and hints of alcoholism.

I will say, I do wish they’d go a little deeper into the detectives’ lives/characters, but other than that I really enjoy the twists and turns of the show (although it gets old to play the “but you didn’t tell us that piece of crucial information when we talked to you BEFORE!” “I didn’t think it was relevant” card so often).

Great and underrated show.

David Leon has the better agent, r14.

I enjoy this show and I'm okay with Blethyn being older. People are staying in their jobs longer. Heck, my dad is 83 and still manages his business better than his employees that are in their 40's.

My only issue with "Vera" (and with a lot of other British detective shows) is that they rely WAY too often on the "long-lost hitherto unknown relative" trope to resolve the mystery.

My issue with Vera is that for seasons 1-5 iTunes wants $7 per episode instead of the usual $1.99. I’m not sure her hot side kick from the early seasons can be worth an extra 5 bucks per episode.

OP: You might also enjoy "Inspector George Gently" and, of course, all the "Masterpiece Mystery" shows (and "Masterpiece Theatre" in general).

My love of foreign mystery series began decades ago with "Lovejoy," an oldie and still a goodie. Few American procedurals can hold a candle to the imports.

R20: Borrow the DVDs from your public library.

[quote]My issue with Vera is that for seasons 1-5 iTunes wants $7 per episode instead of the usual $1.99. I’m not sure her hot side kick from the early seasons can be worth an extra 5 bucks per episode.

You can get Britbox or Acorn (check first to see which one has the seasons you want) through Amazon Prime, and then when you order things from Amazon, choose to forgo next-day delivery and you'll get a credit that will lower the cost of those streaming services.

AcornTV sucks, i.e. currently offering only Seasons One, Two, Six and Seven on Demand.

[quote]I like it though “Shetland” - another series based on the books of Ann Cleeves - is better.

After finishing all of the available "Vera" episodes (I think the next episode of Season 11 will show up soon), I started on "Shetland" and have finished all but the last season (although I guess there will be more forthcoming.) Quite enjoyable, although I definitely need the closed-captioning for the accents ... and I find myself using Google to research some of the unfamiliar words they use.

Shetland looks like it might be interesting to visit. The episode they had that was set on Fair Isle was interesting --but all I could think of was "ew--inbreeding!" I mean, with only 70 people living there? I also use Google Maps to get an idea of the areas they show ... I never realized how close Norway was to northern Scotland -- and then there are the Faroe Islands, which are actually part of Denmark.

Does anybody remember that Chloe Sevigny parody video where 'Chloe' discovers that she's a psychic and her first prediction is that "It is currently raining in the location of Brenda Blethyn."

It always cracks me up because I think of how dour and rainy Vera always seems. It's a great show and she's an excellent actress although I do think she's better in small doses because she can lay it on quite thick (like a lot of stagey, Mike Leigh type actresses).

Maybe I should try the sitcom but she trailer looked godawful.

Half of any Vera episode seems to be her sitting somewhere lovely enjoying the view, not huddled in a rain shelter.

I like Vera Louise Gorman

I liked the show initially, but I got bored when the started recycling scripts from other shows. I understand that it is difficult to come up with that many original plots, but the could still be somewhat more creative.

I like Kenny, Vera's long-suffering bitch. You just know the bloke's counting the days to his retirement.

Yes, David Leon much missed. Cush Jumbo was another break-out star. Husband and I decided we could write a Vera episode.

Vera: Kenny!

Kenny: Mum.

Vera: Kenny!

Kenny: Mum.

Vera: [to suspect] Well, Pet?

and repeat.

Remember the episode where Kenny double-crossed Vera in favor of his former superior and Vera suspended him?

Glad you enjoyed Shetland, r25. The last season that aired wasn’t as good primary, I think, because they ran out of source material from Cleeves.

They also recently finished wrapping the filming of two additional seasons.

I enjoy Douglas Henshall as the lead, and his relationship with his daughter’s birth father (Mark Bonnar). Two hot daddies!

I’m watching and it’s well done but hard to get into.

David Leon is the kind of old school beauty you rarely see on screen anymore, especially from Britain.

I'll still catch episodes when I see them, but it's not appointment tv without Mr Leon.

Someone on the British TV 2022 thread just mentioned watching David Leon in a 2017 series called "In The Dark," currently streaming.

I recently saw him as six or seventh banana on a recent episode of Silent Witness. Maturing nicely into a silver daddy.

I'm curious to check this out.

How does Blethyn handle in the infamous "flying straws"?

Is it explained what happened to her husband Elliot? Or is he how she got into detective work?

You guys can have Kenny Doughty and David Leon, I'll take John Morrison any day. I like his demeanor, gravelly voice, prizefighter looks and air of desperation. I enjoyed his departure from character when he was interacting with that Irish hairdresser who seemed to have his number and quite got under his skin(the icing on the cake was the blonde hair dye) That guy is all man.

David Leon does more directing these days,. He's been back and directed at least one Vera episode. Brenda tweeted about it being great to have both of her boys around.

[quote]David Leon is the kind of old school beauty you rarely see on screen anymore, especially from Britain.

he has the look you gurls all seem to like so much - but a "beauty", in the real world? No.

[quote]Someone on the British TV 2022 thread just mentioned watching David Leon in a 2017 series called "In The Dark," currently streaming.

That was ME!

David Leon was/is extremely gorgeous. I don’t know where your eyes went.