Award-winning period drama Peaky Blinders – inspired by a real crime gang from Birmingham – has gripped the nation since 2013 and it’s back for its sixth and final season this year.
The last nine years have been a wild ride for the cast, including lead actor Cillian Murphy who plays crime boss Tommy Shelby.
The Irish actor is famous for his roles in 28 Days Later, Inception and Batman Begins, but even he had to admit transforming into Tommy was a tricky task.
Cillian told Radio Times: “I’m not a physically imposing person. I have to eat a lot of protein and lift a lot of weights – that takes a while, which I hate.”
Along with some serious hours in the gym and a big diet change, Cillian had to swap his natural Irish accent for a deep Birmingham twang.
To master it, he looked to the show’s screenwriter, Steven Knight. And his idea? Let’s go to the pub!
Cillian added: “We went to the actual Garrison pub in Birmingham with his Brummie mates. We’re just drinking Guinness there, and they’re singing Birmingham City songs and telling all sorts of stories. I was recording on my iPhone.
“I took that home, and used it to try and track the accents. Then I would leave voicemails on Steve’s phone in the accent and see how close I was to it.”
We think he did a pretty great job!
The highly-anticipated drama will return to our screens on Sunday February 27. And it’s set to be full of shocking drama and surprises.
Creator Steven Knight told BBC Breakfast that there’s ‘lots of twists and turns’ to come in the final season, and viewers should ‘expect the unexpected’.
“It’s about Tommy’s redemption,” he said. “Will he or won’t he be redeemed?
“He’s up against some very, very powerful enemies. But his biggest enemy is himself.”
The final season will not feature Aunt Polly. The character was played by Helen McCrory, who very sadly died last year.
But Steven has promised fans a tribute to the late actress in the new season.
Speaking to the Guardian about the final series, Cillian mused: “It feels like the end of something. It’s strange talking about it. Maybe when it’s done I’ll have some perspective.
“It’s the end of 10 years of my life; a big adventure with lots of colleagues and people that you became very close to.”
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