Crossword Genius

Julie Waters played Mrs ____, the tea lady in Acorn Antiques (7)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

overall

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'lady in acorn antiques' is the definition.
Although both the answer and definition are singular nouns, I cannot see how they can define each other.

'julie waters played mrs the tea' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite understand how this works, but
'mrs' could be 'vera' and 'vera' is found within the answer.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for overall that I've seen before include "It protects a worker" , "Protective garment worn over ordinary clothes" , "Including everything" , "Dungarees" , "Taken as a whole" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times.
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