Brenda Blethyn responded candidly when questioned about not receiving a New Year’s honour.
The 78-year-old actress finished her 14-year stint as DCI Vera Stanhope this Thursday. The Northumberland copper is one of many roles that has seen Brenda becoming a much-loved actor on screen.
Over her five-decade career she has appeared in films such as Pride and Prejudice in 2005 and 1992’s A River Runs Through It. She landed Oscar nominations for her roles in Secrets and Lies and Little Voice in 1996 and 1998 respectively, reports Chronicle Live.
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Yet, despite her sparkling career, she has not been honoured on the New Year’s honours list. Woman’s Weekly asked Brenda how it felt to miss out on the recognition of a damehood.
Brenda dismissively remarked: “Recognition? Vera is now shown in 180 territories. It’s number one in Japan, knocking Poirot off the top spot. That’s recognition enough.”
Despite advancing years and first gracing screens in 1980 following a successful stage presence, Brenda shows no signs of retiring. She’s featured in an upcoming movie, tentatively titled ‘Dragonfly’, taking on the role at short notice due to the original lead actor’s departure.
On ITV’s This Morning, Brenda mentioned: “I just stepped in to help them out really, as they’d lost one of their actors, someone had to withdraw and the start was imminent.
“They said ‘would you consider doing this? ‘ And I thought, ‘let’s have a read’ and I loved it, so yeah,” Brenda revealed about being approached for her role. She confesses that playing the part of the copper instilled her with “confidence” as she became an “authority” on the subject.
However, joining the Dragonfly set was a humbling experience, making her feel like a “beginner again”. After Vera concluded last year, Brenda shared that there were emotional moments on set, with tears shed as everyone bid farewell.
With spring approaching, she anticipates feeling sentimental, likely to “probably cry” as she stays home instead of travelling to the North East for filming. Yet, Brenda is also excited about the prospect of spending more time at home with her partner Michael Mayhew and their cockapoo Jack.