One of Ann Cleeves’ most popular characters, Vera Stanhope came into being almost by accident. The first novel in which she features, The Crow Trap, was intended to be a psychological thriller but once the detective burst onto the scene Cleeves knew ‘immediately’ that the character was one she’d want to write about again. Smart and detail-oriented, yet dishevelled and brusque, Vera is invaluable to the Northumberland & City Police Force – but how much is known about her backstory? Here we take a closer look at the character.
Where does Vera Stanhope live and where is her house?
Set in Northern England, the books tend to feature coastal villages and farming communities where hardy residents endure cold, wet winters and the threat of snow – the clothing that Vera favours certainly has practical benefits, as does the old Land Rover that she drives. Vera has lived her whole life in the ‘impractical and mucky’ house in which she was born and comments in The Glass Room that she hopes to die there too. Her father had believed that central heating ‘sapped a person’s strength’ so Vera braves the cold, pointing out to Detective Joe Ashworth that there wasn’t any point getting central heating when she was never there. When filming the TV show, the historic Snook House on Lindisfarne was chosen for the exterior shots of her home.
Who are Vera Stanhope’s family?
Vera’s family is limited. Following her mother’s death in childbirth she was raised by her father, a schoolmaster whose obsession with natural history meant Vera was dragged along on his walks and taught to ‘keep quiet and stand still’ during his observations. She lives alone and states in Hidden Depths that ‘she always would now [that her father has died]’. On personal relationships, she recalls that ‘There had been someone once who’d kept her awake at night dreaming, but nothing had come of it.’ She never had children – though notes in The Moth Catcher that she can’t imagine ‘being any closer to a son’ than she is to Joe – and has no siblings, although the TV series introduced a half-sister, Cara.
Who is Vera Stanhope’s sidekick?
Vera is very much the head of her team, using unorthodox methods and her strong instinct to unravel the investigations she is tasked with. Detective Joe Ashworth often takes care of the practicalities and Vera wonders in Hidden Depths if she treats him like a teacher’s pet, and whether he resents that. She also acknowledges (to herself at least) that he is ‘one of the few members of the team she could trust absolutely to get things right’, and wonders if that ‘said more about her than them.’ While Joe is said to have secured a promotion and left the TV show after four series, he works with Vera consistently throughout in the book series.
How old is Vera Stanhope?
While Cleeves never states exactly how old Vera Stanhope is supposed to be there are some clues throughout the novels. Vera reveals in the first book that she ‘lived with her father for forty-five years’ and that he had died a year ago; another reference to his death having occurred the previous year occurs in Harbour Street, published in 2014; and by 2017’s The Seagull, eighth in the series, Vera contemplates the fact that she is ‘in her mid-fifties’ and could take an early retirement. There is an episode in the TV series that suggests she was born in 1953, which places her in her late 50s when the show first aired in 2011.
Why does Vera always wear a hat and scarf?
In addition to braving the northern climate, Vera suffers from eczema and, when the sun is shining, she has a sensitivity to it that requires her to cover her skin. The bucket hat donned by the TV character was chosen by the actress who plays her, Brenda Blethyn, and has become a favourite with the detective.
