Peaky Blinders

Creator: Steven KnightLifespan: 2013+

Number of series: 1

Background Information

Context• Peaky Blinders is a BBC historic crime drama set in 1920s Birmingham. It follows the lives of the Shelby family who

run a gang called the Peaky Blinders who are involved in a betting institution as well as other illegal activities. They’re like the Birmingham Mafia.

• It is set shortly after World War I with the men in the Shelby family struggling to cope with what they witnessed.Plots• Series one centres around the arrival of ruthless and successful police officer Inspector Chester Campbell (Sam Neill)

who is there to reclaim Birmingham from the Peaky Blinders by introducing a more vicious approach to policing the city.

• His arrival is due to some guns going missing which he is determined to prove were stolen by the Peaky Blinders.• Another main storyline is the arrival of Grace Burgess (Annabelle Wallis), an Irish barmaid who takes the job at the

local pub and catches the eye of Thomas Shelby (Cillian Murphy) early on in the series.• Also, Thomas Shelby’s (Murphy) best friend before the war runs a gang who are attempting at a Communist uprising

which causes friction between them.• Each episode also includes subplots that usually focus on the progression of the Peaky Blinders and their intention to

gain a reputation. • These seem insignificant but are cleverly brought back into story in a later episode. For example, in an episode they

attack a group of Gypsies. In a later episode, the audience find out it was in order to improve the relationship with a notorious London gang.

Characters

Name: Thomas ShelbyActor: Cillian MurphyCharacter Summary: The middle Shelby child who is head of the Peaky Blinders despite his older brother claiming it’s him.He constantly has nightmares of the war and takes opium to forget. He’s very cool and charming yet ruthless and feared throughout Birmingham. Everything he does is for a reason that benefits the Peaky Blinders. He’s the most intelligent of all the Shelby brothers.He would do anything to help his family.

Name: Inspector Chester CampbellActor: Sam Neill Character Summary: The new head of Birmingham’s police force who is dedicated to taking the Peaky Blinders down.He introduces a brutal approach to policing in Birmingham.His dedication causes him to bend the rules in order to provide results. He often has to make deals with the Peaky Blinders to get information.

Name: Grace BurgessActress: Annabelle WallisCharacter Summary: The new Irish barmaid at the local pub. She brings back singing in the pub which hasn’t been since the war. Thomas Shelby does not like this but her confidence to stand up to him pleases him and she becomes the love interest.She is working undercover to gather information for Inspector Chester Campbell, and eventually causes Thomas Shelby more problems.

Editing and Camera Angleshttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HgPMduUaYRk – In this scene, the camera angle switches frequently before Grace gets up to sing. This is used a lot in Peaky Blinders as it sets the scene and gives a sense of the atmosphere as well as perspective. In this scene, we get Grace’s perspective and Thomas’s before the camera switches from the close up to a long shot of Thomas and Grace setting the tone of the scene which causes the audience to fall into a trance and not be released until Grace is finished. The camera focuses on Thomas’s face a lot throughout the series but the slow pan across his face in this scene makes it even more hard for the audience to watch the sadness in him. The same close ups and long shots are used again at the end causing a painfully silent ending.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF9t88hbL9k – This scene is made to set the context. The longshot of Thomas’s back as he reveals the work behind those doors throws the audience into the world of the Peaky Blinders as we see shot after shot of how the business functions in a short space of time. This sets an atmosphere of current success but not every scene involving the Peaky Blinders has such a positive vibe to it but this is introducing us to them.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9_rW67AWpY – Once again there are several close ups of Thomas’s face, his brothers and their opponents. This time it shows how ruthless they are, we see the Shelby brothers laughing and smiling as they fight the Lee brothers. The close ups of the Lee brothers bloodied faces in contrast with the joy on the Shelby brothers’ faces shows how heartless they are. Slow motion is used a lot in the series to make scenes look more spectacular and cool but in this case it does that and lets the audience see the Peaky Blinders use their famous blades in their hats. I think as far as a fight scene goes, it’s very well done because the audience see the Peaky Blinders in action which gives reason for their feared status in Birmingham.

Institution, Creation and AccessibilityInstitution• ‘Peaky Blinders’ is produced by Caryn Mandabach Productions who are mainly known for producing many ‘Nurse

Jackie’ episodes.• They are not a huge production company but are associated with producing several episodes of one series. They did

produce every episode of ‘Peaky Blinders’.• They are an American production company which is interesting as ‘Peaky Blinders’ is a British show which was

shown in Britain.

Creation and Directing• Although Steven Knight takes credit as creator, two episodes were not written by him. He had the help of Toby

Finlay and Stephen Russell. Both are credited with known TV series. Toby Finlay helped in writing new BBC historic drama ‘Ripper Street’, while Stephen Russell was involved with writing Coronation Street and Shameless.

• The six episodes of series one were shared equally between directors, Otto Bathurst who directed an episode of Charlie Brooker’s highly rated drama ‘Black Mirror’ as well being credited with the directing of several episodes of ‘Hustle’, and Tom Harper who is known for directing several episodes of ‘Misfits’ and Shane Meadows’ ‘This is England ‘86’.

Accessibility• Series one was broadcast on BBC2 earlier this year, some episodes may still be on the BBC iPlayer. If not, the DVD is

available for season 1.• It is rather interesting that this was broadcast on BBC2 rather than BBC1 as I see as one of the best British dramas

for a long time.

Interesting Facts

• Jason Statham was supposed to be in series 1 but had to decline because of other work. Rumour has it he and Tom Hardy are going to be in season 2.

• The Peaky Blinders were a real gang named that because they were famous for having a blade in the peak of their hat and going for the eyes hence blinders.

• Steven Knight the creator also created ‘Who Wants to be a Millonaire’.• Sam Neill, the Irish police officer, is actually Australian and pulls off a flawless Irish accent.• Cillian Murphy who plays Thomas Shelby is actually Irish and pulls off a perfect Brummie accent.• The only show that makes a Birmingham accent cool.

Conclusion

• It’s a very cool, innovative show that marks the start in the takeover of TV over film. • America are known for their gangster shows (The Sopranos, Boardwalk Empire) and now ‘Peaky Blinders’ marks a

success in Britain’s attempt to tell a good gangster story but also making it visually impressive in its unique style .• As far as TV goes, Britain aren’t on the same level as America are (Dexter, Breaking Bad, The Wire). We can tell a good

story but they have no style and flair to them. This does just that and is the first British show in a while to achieve that.• I chose it because it deserves endless amounts of recognition. It’s superbly acted (particularly Cillian Murphy and Sam

Neill) with a story that fits all together flawlessly while adding some impressive shots and editing in throughout. Series 2 has a lot to live upto.