Peaky Blinders creator teases “fantastic” new series with Stephen Graham

Stephen Graham came to him with the idea for A Thousand Blows during the pandemic.

By James Hibbs

Published: Friday, 31 March 2023 at 12:00 am

Steven Knight, creator of Peaky Blinders, Taboo and SAS Rogue Heroes, is teaming up with actor Stephen Graham for new Disney Plus series A Thousand Blows – and speaking exclusively with RadioTimes.com, he gave an update on the show’s progress.

The series, which was first announced in August 2022, is set in 1880s London and will follow Hezekiah and Alec, two best friends from Jamaica who find themselves thrust into the city’s illegal boxing scene.

Speaking with RadioTimes.com for a Big RT Interview, Knight said that the series was going to be “fantastic”, and revealed that the idea for it first came from Graham himself.

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Stephen Graham.
Getty

“He contacted me and said, ‘Would you write an hour on this?’” Knight revealed. “I said ‘Alright then’. Then it got picked up and it’s all in production now.”

Knight also revealed that the series was written during the pandemic, and that it is “more collaborative” than many of his other projects, as he has written the first two scripts with new writers coming in for the other episodes – something he said had been “fantastic”.

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It was announced in March 2023 that alongside Graham, the series will also star The Crown‘s Erin Doherty, Small Axe’s Francis Lovehall and Black Mirror‘s Malachi Kirby.

In his Big RT Interview, Knight also opened up about the development of the highly anticipated Peaky Blinders movie, saying that it will be “the same but different” and that viewers should “expect the unexpected”.

He also revealed that SAS Rogue Heroes will soon be going into production on its second season, adding: “I think the first series was fantastic, I think it went really well, and it’s more like that.”