‘I created Peaky Blinders – my new historical drama stands on its own’
Stephen Graham stars in the new series as a terrifying bare-knuckle boxer.
Ever since Peaky Blinders ended three years ago, fans of the acclaimed drama have been trying to find shows that could fill the void left in its absence.
As soon as a first look and trailer was released for A Thousand Blows – the new Disney Plus series also written by Steven Knight – some immediately drew comparisons to the previous BBC programme, due to how gritty it appears and the fact that it’s also a period piece.
The revered screenwriter acknowledges that there might indeed be similarities between the two, both of which also star British acting icon Stephen Graham.
However, while speaking to Metro, he also stressed the importance he places on making sure that every show he creates ‘stands on its own’.
A Thousand Blows is set in the 1880s era of Victorian London, against a backdrop of illegal underground boxing and masterful criminal plans taking place left, right and centre.
There’s also a strong emphasis on class, as viewers are introduced to characters who are scrambling to do what they can to survive in the merciless Big Smoke, while others are living lavish lives of luxury.
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Previous Page Next Page Some fans of Peaky Blinders immediately drew comparisons with the series and the first look at A Thousand Blows (Picture: Netflix/Everett/Rex Features/Shutterstock)‘There are similarities and differences,’ Steven said when addressing the parallels that have been made between A Thousand Blows and Peaky Blinders. ‘I try to make everything that I do stand alone and be itself.’
The 65-year-old outlined that there is an ‘obvious’ similarity in the fact that it’s a ‘working class story’, as well as being a period drama.
‘It’s about men and women who are outside of convention, but who ultimately want to be respectable in the end. They want to get there, but the way they get there is by doing things, bad things. So there are similarities, and I don’t mind that,’ he shared.
‘I think what you have to do is accept other people’s views, because objectively, you can’t judge your own stuff.’
The idea for the show actually came from Boiling Point star Stephen, who came to writer Steven with an idea for a story based around the real life of a man called Hezekiah Moscow, who’s played by Malachi Kirby in the drama.
A Thousand Blows stars Stephen Graham (left), Erin Doherty (second right) and Malachi Kirby (right) with the show’s creator Steven Knight (second left) (Picture: Alan Chapman/Dave Benett/WireImage) The character who Malachi plays, Hezekiah Moscow, was a real man with a fascinating story (Picture: Robert Viglasky/Disney Plus)‘I was approached by Stephen Graham with an idea, and when it’s Stephen, you listen and you take a look,’ Steven stated.
‘And I’m glad I did, because he approached me with the idea of telling the story of Hezekiah Moscow, who came to London in the 1880s from Jamaica with a desire to be a lion tamer and became a bare-knuckle boxer. So I did some research and found out that the story was quite extraordinary and absolutely worth telling.’
In addition to the tale of Hezekiah, A Thousand Blows also explores the real all-female gang the Forty Elephants, who in the show are led by their queen Mary Carr, portrayed by The Crown star Erin Doherty,
‘I had wanted to for a long time tell a story of the Forty Elephants, who were a real gang in London at the time, all women. There was always 40 of them. They had a queen who led them, and they made a living out of robbery and burglary and contracts and all sorts of interesting things,’ Steven explained.
‘So when considering the Hezekiah story, I also thought this would be a great chance, because they were both in the same place at the same time, to put the two of them together, two stories.’
Erin stars as Mary Carr, the fearsome and extremely smart queen of the all-female Forty Elephants gang (Picture: Robert Viglasky/Disney Plus)Given all the Peaky Blinders comparisons being made when discussing A Thousand Blows, we couldn’t help but also wonder about the upcoming film adaptation, which will see Cillian Murphy reprise his role as Tommy Shelby.
So during our interview with Steven, we had to ask… how’s production going on the movie, now that filming has wrapped?
‘I can tell you nothing,’ he admitted. ‘It’s set in World War Two. If you’ve seen the cast list, you’ll know it’s just about the best actors of this generation, all in one place, and I’ve seen rushes and assemblies, and it is not going to disappoint.’
I remarked that I couldn’t wait to see Cillian share the screen with actor Barry Keoghan, who is joining the franchise as a newcomer, and who fans suspect could be playing Tommy’s grown-up son.
‘I know. You wait, you wait,’ Steven teased.
A Thousand Blows premieres on Friday February 21 on Disney Plus.
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