Spotlight falls on Amble as ITV’s Vera comes to town

Brenda Blethyn and Kenny Doughty were in Amble for the filming of Episode 2, Series 9 of Vera.

The Friendliest Port provided the backdrop to an episode of the long-running ITV series with Brenda Blethyn in the title role.

It was filmed around the harbour area last summer, with the Coquet Yacht Club being used as one of the prime locations.

Kenny Doughty (DS Aiden Healy) and Brenda Blethyn (DCI Vera Stanhope) looking across the marina to the Coble Quay apartments (Episode 2, Series 9).

For the programme, The Fish Shack, owned by the Boathouse Food Group, was converted into a greasy-spoon café, complete with plastic tablecloths, fly-blind on the doorway and tables out on the harbour.

It was episode two of series nine and the storyline involved DCI Vera Stanhope being called to the tragic drugs-related scene of an unidentified teenage boy found dead in a sleepy coastal town.

Julia Aston, director of the Amble Development Trust, said: “While Amble wasn’t specifically identified as the location, anyone knowing the town would know immediately where they were.

“Hopefully, viewers enjoyed the programme and, while we wouldn’t want Amble to be identified as a town with that sort of drug problem, the spectacular views and location sets should override the storyline and character type.

“But on TV there’s nothing like a good, old-fashioned murder to pique interest and if we experience the upsurge in visitor numbers from viewers of Vera as we did following the Robson Green programmes, we’re set for a busy summer!”

Martin Charlton, who runs The Fish Shack, said such exposure could only benefit the town and everyone in it.

“The world has discovered Amble,” he said. “Vera is watched by a global audience of around 9million people, so there is a lot of interest in it. The more people who visit, the more staff we can employ or give extra hours.”

It is another feather in the cap of a county that has enjoyed a lot of appearances in TV shows and movies recently.

Vera's trademark Land Rover parked in the Harbour Road car park in Amble.

“As the programme is filmed throughout Northumberland, the exposure can only add to the interest and accolades the county is experiencing,” said Julia. “It’s been a long time in coming but as has been said many times before, it’s been worth the wait.”

You can catch the next episode of Vera on ITV between 8pm and 10pm on Sunday.

The Amble episode is available to watch on the ITV Hub for a month. Visit https://www.itv.com