Vera icon Brenda Blethyn's A Woman of Substance confirms release date
brenda blethyn will return to television screens this spring in two very different projects: the seaside comfort comedy Kate & Koji, available to binge in two six-episode series, and Channel 4’s eight-part period remake A Woman of Substance, which will premiere with its first two episodes on Wednesday 11 March and Thursday 12 March at 9 p. m. ET.
Blethyn is best known as DCI Vera Stanhope in ITV's Vera, and her recent work ranges from the cosy, seaside-set Kate & Koji to the Yorkshire-set revenge drama A Woman of Substance. Kate & Koji debuted on ITV in 2020; its first series ran for six episodes and averaged just under five million viewers when it first aired in 2020, and a second six-episode series followed in 2022.
Kate & Koji pairs Brenda Blethyn’s Kate, a prejudiced British working-class woman who runs a café in an Essex seaside town, with Koji, an African doctor seeking asylum who initially shelters at Kate’s café while his papers are processed. Koji (played in series one by Jimmy Akingbola) cannot legally work in the UK until he is granted asylum; Kate proposes a deal—free food in exchange for unofficial medical consultations—and over six episodes Koji treats local customers from an underground clinic while forming an unlikely friendship with Kate. Jimmy Akingbola stepped away from the role for the second series to star in the US reboot of The Fresh Prince of Bel Air and was replaced by Okorie Chukwu for series two, which follows Koji as he navigates a romantic relationship and Kate as she contends with a former rival.
Brenda Blethyn headlines Channel 4 remake
A Woman of Substance is an eight-part Channel 4 remake of a previous adaptation released 40 years ago and is based on Barbara Taylor Bradford's 1979 novel. The series casts Brenda Blethyn and Jessica Reynolds as two versions of Emma Harte across different time periods; Emmett J Scanlan also stars. Channel 4 will premiere the first two episodes on Wednesday 11 March and Thursday 12 March at 9 p. m. ET, with the full eight-part boxset available to stream on Channel 4 following the first transmission.
What the trailer shows
The released trailer frames Blethyn’s Emma Harte in New York, desperate to exact revenge, then cuts to the younger Emma (Jessica Reynolds) working in a grand house and being warned to be careful of her “ambition. ” The official logline opens in 1911: Emma Harte, an impoverished ambitious maid in Yorkshire, England, goes on a dizzying journey to become the world’s richest woman, gazing down from a sprawling luxury New York penthouse.
Cast, creators and writing team
The cast includes Leanne Best, Ewan Horrocks, Harry Cadby, Niall Wright and Robert Wilfort, with Toby Regbo, Hiftu Quasem, Sophie Bould, Georgina Sadler and Jo Joyner rounding out the ensemble. The adaptation’s scripts were written by Katherine Jakeways with co-writer Roanne Bardsley. The remake follows the novel’s rags-to-riches arc and its focus on a woman defying society across the 20th century.
From cosy café to Yorkshire revenge
For viewers who know Blethyn from Vera, Kate & Koji offers a contrasting, comforting watch: created by Andy Hamilton and Guy Jenkin—who were also behind Outnumbered—the series was praised for its humour, its portrayal of British societal issues and Blethyn’s performance. Both series of Kate & Koji are available to watch on Prime Video, with the second series also available on ITVX.
What’s next
A Woman of Substance will air its first two episodes on Wednesday 11 March and Thursday 12 March at 9 p. m. ET; the second episode follows the next night at the same time and the schedule for the remaining six episodes is yet to be confirmed. In the meantime, both six-episode series of Kate & Koji remain available to stream, and viewers can watch the A Woman of Substance trailer that shows Blethyn’s Emma in New York and Reynolds’s younger Emma in Yorkshire.
