Audiences were delighted when a brand new series of beloved ITV drama, Vera, started airing back in September, but the excitement was short-lived as only two of the new episodes aired.
MORE: Poirot star David Suchet reveals sadness after being forced to miss out on knighthood
And now fans will be happy to hear that they don't have to wait much longer to catch the rest of the series as it is due to return to screens on Sunday 9 January 2022.
WATCH: Are you a fan of ITV drama Vera?
Taking to Twitter star Kenny Doughty shared the news with his followers, retweeting a post from an ITV scheduler that read: "CONFIRMED #ITV Brand NEW #Vera with the brilliant @BrendaBlethyn & @kennydoughty. Sunday 9th January 8pm @ITV @WeAreSTV @itvhub."
MORE: Shaun Evans reveals plans to step away from Endeavour role
MORE: Vera star Brenda Blethyn looks unrecognisable in throwback to early career
The actor who plays DS Aiden Healy on the show was thrilled as he added: "This is exciting NEWS!!!!!!" - and his followers clearly felt the same.
"Cannot wait for a new series. Best programme on tv by far!" one wrote in the replies. Another said:" Woohoo at last!!" and a third fan added: "Yessssss the early Christmas present I didn't know I needed."
The rest of series 11 will begin airing in early January
The new episodes will see the brilliant Brenda Blethyn back as DCI Vera Stanhope, a crotchety Northumberland-based detective who is unconventional in her methods but consistent in her results.
The reason why there has been such a huge delay in airing the rest of the new episodes is due to the coronavirus outbreak. When the new series was announced, it was reported that the cast and crew, like many other TV production teams, were faced with tough restrictions to work around. This meant that the filming, editing and release of series 11 were affected.
MORE: Vera star Brenda Blethyn reveals 35-year engagement - and why she finally married
Brenda has previously opened up about the difficulties the show faced as a result of the pandemic. She told ITV: "On the first day back filming, I think everyone felt a huge sense of pride that we had all come together, we were all putting our best foot forward to try and get this done. We all knew it would be difficult with all the restrictions."
She added in another statement: "The safety of all personnel is always at the forefront of production, and with all the extra COVID precautions in place we will relish creating and delivering six cracking new episodes."