Brenda Blethyn has shared some exciting news on the future of ITV's beloved detective series, Vera.
MORE: Vera's future beyond series 11 revealed
The actress, who plays the titular role of DCI Vera Stanhope in the drama, has revealed that as long as she is "fit and able", she'll be returning to the show.
WATCH: Have you caught up on series 11 of Vera?
In a recent interview with RadioTimes.com, the 76-year-old was asked if she would ever hang up her iconic green mac and fisherman hat. She replied: "I haven’t got any plans to [leave].
"At the moment, all the time I’m fit and able, I’ll be visiting Vera."
The news will come as a relief to fans of the drama, who have been waiting since January to watch the two remaining episodes of series 11. The first two instalments of the series aired in August and September last year, with the next two episodes airing four months later in January.
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At the time, viewers were left confused by the change of schedule, with the latest series of The Good Karma Hospital and ITV's new drama, Trigger Point, filling Vera's usual two-hour Sunday night slot.
© Photo: ITVBrenda said that she has "no plans" to leave the series
While viewers have had to wait a little longer to view the entirety of season 11, thankfully, series 12 should be just around the corner as Brenda recently revealed that filming is imminent.
The actress was appearing on ITV's This Morning earlier this month to discuss the return of her sitcom series, Kate & Koji, when she mentioned the new episodes of Vera.
Chatting to Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby, Brenda said filming for Kate & Koji only wrapped very recently, before mentioning her busy schedule: "[We finished] two weeks ago," she began, adding: "And I start Vera on Monday!"
© Photo: RexBrenda recently appeared on This Morning
Phillip then said: "And you're away for a long time there aren't you?" to which Brenda replied: "Yeah, so sort of six or seven months."
With Brenda's filming timeline in mind, production should wrap in the autumn, meaning viewers can expect series 12 to arrive on screens in the winter.
Vera is available to watch on ITV Hub and BritBox.
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