Peaky Blinders is a British period crime drama television series created by Steven Knight. Set in Birmingham, England, it follows the exploits of the Peaky Blinders crime gang in the direct aftermath of the First World War. The fictional gang is loosely based on a real urban youth gang of the same name who were active in the city from the 1880s to the 1910s.
Peaky Blinders | |
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Created by | Steven Knight |
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Starring |
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Opening theme | "Red Right Hand" by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds |
Composers |
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Country of origin | United Kingdom |
Original language | English |
No. of series | 6 |
No. of episodes | 36 (list of episodes) |
Production | |
Executive producers |
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Producers |
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Production locations |
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Cinematography | George Steel |
Running time | 55–83 minutes |
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Budget | $1.5 million per episode |
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Picture format | 1080i HDTV |
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Original release | 12 September 2013 (2013-09-12) – 3 April 2022 (2022-04-03) |
It features an ensemble cast led by Cillian Murphy, starring as Tommy Shelby, Helen McCrory as Elizabeth "Polly" Gray, Paul Anderson as Arthur Shelby, Sophie Rundle as Ada Shelby and Joe Cole as John Shelby, the gang's senior members. Sam Neill, Annabelle Wallis, Iddo Goldberg, Tom Hardy, Charlotte Riley, Finn Cole, Natasha O'Keeffe, Paddy Considine, Adrien Brody, Aidan Gillen, Anya Taylor-Joy, Sam Claflin, Amber Anderson, James Frecheville and Stephen Graham are also starring. It premiered on 12 September 2013, telecast on BBC Two until the fourth series (with repeats on BBC Four), then moved to BBC One for the fifth and sixth series.
Netflix, under a deal with Weinstein Company and Endemol, acquired the rights to release the show in the United States and around the world. In January 2021, it was announced that the sixth series would be the last, followed by a spinoff film. The final series was broadcast in 2022.
Peaky Blinders is a crime drama centred on a family of mixed Irish Traveller and Romani origins based in Birmingham, England, starting in 1919, several months after the end of the First World War. It centres on the Peaky Blinders street gang and their ambitious, cunning crime boss Tommy Shelby (Murphy). The gang comes to the attention of Major Chester Campbell (Neill), a detective chief inspector in the Royal Irish Constabulary sent over by Winston Churchill from Belfast, where he had been sent to clean up the city of the Irish Republican Army flying columns, the Communist Party of Great Britain, street gangs, and common criminals.[2][3] Winston Churchill (played by Andy Nyman in series 1 and Richard McCabe in series 2) charged him with suppressing disorder and uprising in Birmingham and recovering a stolen cache of arms meant to be shipped to Libya.[4][5] The first series concluded on 3 December 1919—"Black Star Day", the event where the Peaky Blinders plan to take over Billy Kimber's betting pitches at the Worcester Races.
The second series has the Peaky Blinders expand their criminal organisation in the "South and North while maintaining a stronghold in their Birmingham heartland".[6] It begins in 1921 and ends with a climax at Epsom racecourse on 31 May 1922, Derby Day.[7]
The third series starts and ends in 1924, as it follows Tommy and the gang entering an even more dangerous world as they once again expand, this time internationally. The third series also features Father John Hughes (Paddy Considine), who is involved in an anti-communist organisation; Ruben Oliver (Alexander Siddig), a painter whom Polly enlists to paint her portrait; Russian Grand Duchess Tatiana Petrovna (Gaite Jansen); and Linda Shelby (Kate Phillips), new wife of Arthur.
The fourth series begins on Christmas Eve 1925, with the Peaky Blinders getting word that the New York Mafia is coming to avenge the murders they committed the previous season and ends following the general strike of May 1926, with Tommy using Jessie Eden for information and being elected as a Member of Parliament in 1927.
The fifth series begins two years later on 29 October 1929 (Black Tuesday) and ends on 7 December 1929, the morning after a rally led by British Union of Fascists leader Sir Oswald Mosley.
The sixth series begins on 5 December 1933, as prohibition is repealed in the United States. The Nazi Party has also obtained power in Germany, leading to a growth in membership of the British Union of Fascists. Tommy must not only deal with Mosley but also with plots from the Irish Mob as well as the Anti-Treaty IRA.
Character | Portrayed by | Series | ||||||||
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1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | |||||
Thomas "Tommy" Shelby | Cillian Murphy | Main | ||||||||
Chief Inspector/Major Chester Campbell | Sam Neill | Main[lower-alpha 1] | Does not appear | |||||||
Elizabeth Pollyanna "Polly" Gray, née Shelby | Helen McCrory | Main | Does not appear | |||||||
Arthur Shelby Jr. | Paul Anderson | Main | ||||||||
Grace Shelby, née Burgess | Annabelle Wallis | Main[lower-alpha 2][lower-alpha 3] | Does not appear | Main | Does not appear | |||||
Freddie Thorne | Iddo Goldberg | Main | Does not appear | |||||||
Ada Thorne, née Shelby | Sophie Rundle | Main | ||||||||
John "Johnny" Shelby | Joe Cole | Main | Does not appear | |||||||
Charlie Strong | Ned Dennehy | Main | ||||||||
Jeremiah "Jimmy" Jesus | Benjamin Zephaniah | Main[lower-alpha 4][lower-alpha 5][lower-alpha 6] | ||||||||
Roberts | David Dawson | Main | Does not appear | |||||||
Winston Churchill | Andy Nyman | Main[lower-alpha 7] | Does not appear | |||||||
Richard McCabe | Does not appear | Recurring | Does not appear | |||||||
Neil Maskell | Does not appear | Main[lower-alpha 8] | ||||||||
Billy Kimber | Charlie Creed-Miles | Main | Does not appear | |||||||
Arthur Shelby, Sr. | Tommy Flanagan | Main[lower-alpha 9] | Does not appear | |||||||
Darby Sabini | Noah Taylor | Does not appear | Main | Does not appear | ||||||
Alfred "Alfie" Solomons | Tom Hardy | Does not appear | Main[lower-alpha 10] | |||||||
May Fitz Carleton | Charlotte Riley | Does not appear | Main | Does not appear | Main | Does not appear | ||||
Michael Gray | Finn Cole | Does not appear | Main[lower-alpha 11] | |||||||
Lizzie Shelby, née Stark | Natasha O'Keeffe | Guest | Main[lower-alpha 12] | |||||||
Esme Shelby-Lee | Aimee-Ffion Edwards | Recurring | Main | Does not appear | Main | |||||
Grand Duchess Tatiana Petrovna | Gaite Jansen | Does not appear | Main | Does not appear | ||||||
Ruben Oliver | Alexander Siddig | Does not appear | Main | Does not appear | ||||||
Johnny Dogs | Packy Lee | Recurring | Main | |||||||
Arch Duke Leon Romanov | Jan Bijvoet | Does not appear | Main | Does not appear | ||||||
Grand Duchess Izabella Petrovna | Dina Korzun | Does not appear | Main | Does not appear | ||||||
Father John Hughes | Paddy Considine | Does not appear | Main | Does not appear | ||||||
Linda Shelby | Kate Phillips | Does not appear | Recurring | Main | ||||||
Jessie Eden | Charlie Murphy | Does not appear | Main | Does not appear | ||||||
Luca Changretta | Adrien Brody | Does not appear | Main | Does not appear | ||||||
Curly | Ian Peck | Recurring | Main | |||||||
Bonnie Gold | Jack Rowan | Does not appear | Main[lower-alpha 13] | Does not appear | ||||||
Aberama Gold | Aidan Gillen | Does not appear | Main | Does not appear | ||||||
Gina Gray | Anya Taylor-Joy | Does not appear | Main | |||||||
Colonel Ben Younger | Kingsley Ben-Adir | Does not appear | Guest | Main | Does not appear | |||||
Sir Oswald Mosley | Sam Claflin | Does not appear | Main | |||||||
Jimmy McCavern | Brian Gleeson | Does not appear | Main | Does not appear | ||||||
Mother Superior | Kate Dickie | Does not appear | Main[lower-alpha 14] | Does not appear | ||||||
Brilliant Chang | Andrew Koji | Does not appear | Main | Does not appear | ||||||
Barney Thomason | Cosmo Jarvis | Does not appear | Main | Does not appear | ||||||
Finn Shelby | Alfie Evans-Meese | Recurring | Does not appear | |||||||
Harry Kirton | Does not appear | Recurring | Main | |||||||
Laura McKee/Captain Swing | Charlene McKenna | Does not appear | Guest | Main[lower-alpha 15] | ||||||
Frances | Pauline Turner | Does not appear | Recurring | Main[lower-alpha 16] | ||||||
Lady Diana Mitford | Amber Anderson | Does not appear | Main | |||||||
Jack Nelson | James Frecheville | Does not appear | Main | |||||||
Hayden Stagg | Stephen Graham | Does not appear | Main | |||||||
Erasmus "Duke" Shelby | Conrad Khan | Does not appear | Main | |||||||
Isiah Jesus | Jordan Bolger | Does not appear | Recurring | Does not appear | ||||||
Daryl McCormack | Does not appear | Recurring | Main[lower-alpha 17] | |||||||
Billy Grade | Emmett J. Scanlan | Does not appear | Recurring | Main[lower-alpha 18] |
Series | Episodes | Originally aired | Average UK viewers (millions) | |||
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First aired | Last aired | Network | ||||
1 | 6 | 12 September 2013 (2013-09-12) | 17 October 2013 (2013-10-17) | BBC Two | 2.38 | |
2 | 6 | 2 October 2014 (2014-10-02) | 6 November 2014 (2014-11-06) | 2.18 | ||
3 | 6 | 5 May 2016 (2016-05-05) | 9 June 2016 (2016-06-09) | 2.38 | ||
4 | 6 | 15 November 2017 (2017-11-15) | 20 December 2017 (2017-12-20) | 3.35 | ||
5 | 6 | 25 August 2019 (2019-08-25) | 22 September 2019 (2019-09-22) | BBC One | 5.87 | |
6 | 6 | 27 February 2022 (2022-02-27) | 3 April 2022 (2022-04-03) | 5.42 |
Peaky Blinders was created by Steven Knight and produced by Katie Swinden. Screen Yorkshire provided funding for the production through the Yorkshire Content Fund, ensuring that the majority of the show was filmed in Yorkshire as part of the deal.[8] Linguists weren't hired in the production to assist in the show, leading to the Romani Gypsies in the earlier series frequently speaking broken Romanian (as opposed to Romani).[9]
The first series was filmed in Birmingham, Bradford, Dudley, Leeds, Liverpool, and Port Sunlight.[10] Railway sequences were filmed between Keighley and Damems, using carriages from the Ingrow Museum of Rail Travel (owned by Vintage Carriages Trust),[11] and carriages owned by the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway Trust.[12] Many of the scenes for the show were shot at the Black Country Living Museum.[13] Steven Knight, Stephen Russell and Toby Finlay all had writing credits on the series.[14]
Ulster-born, New Zealand-raised Sam Neill enlisted the help of Northern Irish actors James Nesbitt and Liam Neeson to help him recover his lost Northern Irish accent for the role of C.I. Campbell. In the end, he had to tone down the accent since the series was marketed in the United States.[15]
A second series was commissioned shortly after the broadcast of the first and aired in October and November 2014.[6] On 11 January 2014, auditions were held in Digbeth area of Birmingham (near where parts of the series are set) for white and mixed race teenage male extras, resulting in lengthy queues.[16][17]
Shortly after the final episode of the second series, the show announced via its Twitter account that it had been renewed for a third series.[18] On 5 October 2015, the official Peaky Blinders Twitter account announced that filming had begun for series 3.[19] Filming completed on 22 January 2016, after 78 days of shooting.[20][21]
During the initial broadcast of series 3, the BBC renewed Peaky Blinders for series 4 and 5, each of which comprises six episodes.[22] Filming for series 4 started in March 2017 and premiered on 15 November 2017 on BBC Two.[23] Both The Weinstein Company and its logo in its credits weren't included, even though the company was formerly involved in the US distribution of the series.[24]
The BBC commissioned a fifth series in mid-2016. On 22 August 2018, it was confirmed that series 5 would be broadcast on BBC One.[25][26] Having already premiered to a select audience at Birmingham Town Hall on 18 July 2019, the series began airing on BBC One on 25 August 2019.[27]
On 5 May 2018, Steven Knight told Birmingham Press Club that "we are definitely doing [series] six".[28] Production on the series was due to begin in March 2020, but was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[29] During 2020, rumours emerged linking comedian Rowan Atkinson to the show for the role of Adolf Hitler in series 6, but the producers denied the involvement saying that the news is "completely false".[30]
On 18 January 2021, it was announced that series six, which had just begun filming, would be the final television series of Peaky Blinders; though Knight revealed "the story will continue in another form".[31] Helen McCrory, who played the character of Polly Gray, died in April 2021 and had been unable to film any scenes for the series.[29] Series six premiered on 27 February 2022.[32][33]
Following the announcement that the sixth series would be the last, Knight clarified that, following the year-long production hiatus in 2020, it had been decided to produce a feature length movie in place of a seventh television series, with other connected television series potentially following.[34] There is still no production date, but creator Steven Knight has revealed that the movie should hit cinema screens in 2024.[35]
Peaky Blinders won the Returning Drama award at the 2022 National Television Awards ceremony, with Knight subsequently confirming during his acceptance speech that production of the film would begin in Spring 2023.[36]
The show received widespread critical acclaim. David Renshaw of The Guardian summarised the series as a "riveting, fast-paced tale of post-first world war Birmingham gangsters", praising Murphy as the "ever-so-cool Tommy Shelby" and the rest of the cast for their "powerful performances".[37] Sarah Compton of The Telegraph gave the series a 4/5 rating, praising the show for its originality and "taking all of our expectations and confounding them".[38] Alex Fletcher from Digital Spy believes that "Peaky Blinders has started as sharp as a dart",[39] while Den of Geek called the series "the most intelligent, stylish and engrossing BBC drama in ages".[40] Cult TV Times critic Hugh David said the show "warrants the billing" by "managing to tick several ratings boxes – period drama, gangster epic, film star leads – yet go against the grain of those in the most interesting of ways".[41]
The show has been particularly celebrated for its stylish cinematography and charismatic performances, as well as for casting an eye over a part of England and English history rarely explored on television.[42] Historians have been divided over whether bringing characters and events from other decades into a 1920s story undermines claims to historical accuracy, or whether working-class life in the period is nevertheless depicted in a truthful and resonant way.[43] Reviews for the second series have remained positive, with Ellen E. Jones of The Independent commenting that "Peaky Blinders can now boast several more big-name actors to supplement the sterling work of Cillian Murphy, Helen McCrory and Sam Neill", referring to second series additions Tom Hardy and Noah Taylor.[44]
Several critics have compared the show favourably to the American series Boardwalk Empire,[45][46] which shares the same themes and historical context. Show writer Steven Knight stated in an early interview: "Do you know – and I'm not just saying this – but I've never watched them. I've never seen The Wire, I've never seen Boardwalk Empire, I've never seen any of them." When asked if he deliberately avoided watching these dramas, he responded: "It's sort of deliberate in that I don't really want to be looking at other people's work because it does affect what you do inevitably."[47] On 2 March 2016, Knight told the Crime Scene Quarterly "I've had unsolicited communication from Michael Mann, the film director, from Dennis Lehane, Snoop Dogg – he's such a fan. And the late David Bowie was a huge fan – more of that to come" (strongly hinting Bowie's involvement on series 3). It was later confirmed that David Bowie's music would be featured, and Leonard Cohen had also written a new song for series 3.[48][49][50]
The sixth and final series has received universal acclaim. On Metacritic, it has a weighted average score of 86 out of 100 based on 7 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".[51] On Rotten Tomatoes, it holds a 100% approval rating based on 14 reviews, with an average critic rating of 8/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Peaky Blinders' sixth season gracefully addresses the untimely passing of star Helen McCrory while setting the stage for a fitting climax to this epic saga of likable scalawags."[52]
Series four and five introduced the character Jessie Eden, based on the real-life British communist and trade union leader.[53] Although the reception was mixed,[54] some people who had known Jessie Eden personally took offence to the way she was depicted.[55] Graham Stevenson, a historian of British communism, a personal friend of Jessie Eden and the writer of her biography, was a harsh critic of the show, stating:
I knew Eden, and as a callow 22-year-old, I didn't ask the 70-year-old Jessie about her relationships, let alone sex life. But I doubt her private life was as complicated or dramatic as her eponymous character's. Nor can I see any young woman during the 1920s gratuitously going into a gents' toilets, as Eden is shown doing, for any reason at all other than life or death. The social values of the programme are ahistorical. It is surely the conceit that Tommy Shelby, the gangster villain-hero of the series, could ever convince a woman like Eden to be wined and dined, let alone be seduced, that finally reveals the true motives of the creators of the programme.[56]
Stevenson also criticised the show for its clothing choices, incorrectly showing Churchill as Home Secretary in 1919, incorrectly depicting Eden as a mass leader during the 1926 General Strike; eventually these inaccuracies led Stevenson to stop watching the show.[57] He went on to elaborate: "Although the TV series' cinematography, music and fast-paced action is obviously attractive, especially matched to outstanding charismatic performances, it's disappointing that an expert in Tudor history was the historical adviser to the series, rather than someone with a background in trade unionism or communism."[56]
At a round table event featuring Stevenson, the poet Dave Puller, and cultural historian Paul Long, the three discussed the series and its depictions of the British working class. Long rated the series positively and praised the series as a great representation of interesting working-class protagonists. Puller had mixed feelings and was disappointed that the show chose to focus on Jessie Eden's fictional romance with Tommy, rather than her real achievements as a communist and a trade union leader.[54]
Series | Award | Category | Nominee(s) | Result |
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1 | BAFTA Television Craft Awards | Best Director: Fiction | Otto Bathurst | Won |
Best Original Television Music | Martin Phipps | Nominated | ||
Best Photography and Lighting: Fiction | George Steel | Won | ||
Best Production Design | Grant Montgomery | Nominated | ||
Best Sound: Fiction | Stuart Hilliker, Brian Milliken, Matthew Skelding, Lee Walpole | Nominated | ||
Best Special Visual Effects | Bluebolt (VFX), Rushes (Colourist) | Nominated | ||
Biarritz International Festival of Audovisual Programming | Best Actor in a TV Series or Serial | Cillian Murphy | Won | |
Best Actress in a TV Series or Serial | Helen McCrory | Won | ||
Best Music in a TV Series or Serial | Martin Phipps | Won | ||
Crime Thriller Awards UK | Best Supporting Actress | Helen McCrory | Nominated | |
RTS Programme Awards | Best Drama Series | "production team" | Won | |
RTS Craft & Design Awards | Best Costume Design: Drama | Stephanie Collie | Won | |
Best Make-Up Design: Drama | Loz Schiavo | Nominated | ||
Best Production Design: Drama | Grant Montgomery | Nominated | ||
Judges' Award | "production team" | Won | ||
Televisual Bulldog Awards | Best Drama One-Off or Serial | "production team" | 2nd Place | |
2 | BAFTA Television Awards | Best Drama Series | "production team" | Nominated |
BAFTA Television Craft Awards | Best Make-Up and Hair | Loz Schiavo | Nominated | |
Best Photography and Lighting: Fiction | Simon Dennis | Nominated | ||
Best Production Design | Grant Montgomery | Nominated | ||
IFTA Film and Television Awards | Best Leading Actor in a Drama Series | Cillian Murphy | Nominated | |
Best Costume Design | Lorna Marie Mugan | Won | ||
Best Director: Drama Series | Colm McCarthy | Nominated | ||
RTS Programme Awards | Best Drama Series | "production team" | Nominated | |
RTS Craft & Design Awards | Best Photography: Drama | Simon Dennis | Nominated | |
Writers' Guild of Great Britain Awards | Best TV Drama – Long Form | Steven Knight | Nominated | |
3 | National Television Awards | Best Period Drama Series | "Production team" | Nominated |
Best Drama Performance | Cillian Murphy | Nominated | ||
Irish Film and Television Awards | Best Leading Actor in a Drama Series | Cillian Murphy | Won | |
4 | BAFTA Television Awards | Best Drama Series | "production team" | Won |
BAFTA Television Craft Awards | Best Costume Design | Alison McCosh | Nominated | |
Best Editing: Fiction | Dan Roberts (Episode 5) | Nominated | ||
Best Make Up & Hair Design | Loz Schiavo | Nominated | ||
Best Sound: Fiction | Forbes Noonan, Ben Norrington, Jim Goddard, Grant Bridgeman | Nominated | ||
Best Writer: Drama | Steven Knight | Nominated | ||
TV Choice Awards | Best Drama Series | "production team" | Won | |
Best Actor | Cillian Murphy | Won | ||
Best Actress | Helen McCrory | Nominated | ||
5 | Cinema Audio Society Awards | Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing for Television Series – One Hour | Stu Wright, Nigel Heath, Brad Rees, Jimmy Robertson, Oliver Brierley, Ciaran Smith (for "Mr. Jones") | Nominated |
On 24 September 2014, it was announced that Netflix had acquired exclusive US distribution rights from the Weinstein Company and Endemol. The entirety of series 1 became available for streaming on 30 September 2014; series 2 launched in November 2014.[58] Series 3 was made available 31 May 2016.[59] Due to licensing restrictions, however, most of the show's original soundtrack is not available on the Netflix-distributed version of the series.[60] In 2018, it was announced Peaky Blinders would be moved from its original broadcast channel, BBC Two, to BBC One for its fifth and sixth series.[61]
According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), Peaky Blinders has had a detectable cultural impact in the UK. In 2018, the name Arthur surged into the top 10 boys names for the first time since the 1920s, and Ada jumped into the girls' top 100 for the first time in a century too. The assumption reached by the ONS is that the popularity of these names was inspired by the characters Arthur Shelby Jr. and Ada Thorne.[62]
In August 2020, a video game based on the television series was developed by FuturLab and released for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and for PC via Steam.[63][64]
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