Vera (TV series) audience of 6.53 million over four episodes, whilst the fourth series attracted a slightly smaller audience of 6.42 million over four episodes. In 2018 the ratings increased to between 8 to 9 million viewers. Vera (TV series) Vera is a British crime drama series based on novels of the same name, written by crime writer Ann Cleeves. It was first broadcast on ITV on 1 May 2011, and to date, eight series have aired. The series stars Brenda Blethyn as the principal character, Detective Chief Inspector Vera Stanhope. Vera is a middle-aged employee of the fictional Northumberland & City Police,
Margaret Murphy (writer) Margaret Murphy (writer) Margaret Murphy (born 14 April 1959) is a British crime writer. Murphy was born and brought up in Liverpool, Lancashire where she gained a degree in Environmental Biology at the University of Liverpool and later an MA with Distinction in Writing at Liverpool JMU, a course on which she now lectures. She has been a countryside ranger, science teacher, dyslexia specialist and psychology student. After a string of successful stand-alone novels, Murphy began her first series with "The Dispossessed" which was followed by "Now You See Me", featuring fictional Merseyside detectives Jeff Rickman, Lee Foster and Naomi