#OnThisDay in 1997: Rising star Lewis Hamilton (then aged 12) spoke about his ambition to become an F1 racing driver, on the BBC Two show Black Britain.
Next Monday, 4 March, at the new time of 11:15pm, on BBC Two - ‘Our Flag Means Death’, Season 2, Episode 5, ‘The Curse of the Seafaring Life’. This poster was modelled on a Hammer Horror poster for the film, ‘The Curse of the Werewolf’. I thought it was appropriate, given Rhys’s other role as Anton Anderson the Alpha Werewolf in the ‘What We Do In The Shadows’ film, and ‘Wellington Paranormal’.
'Before his life-changing call from director Christopher Nolan, his sensational performance as the father of the atomic bomb in Oppenheimer, and the well-deserved Oscars buzz following the film’s release, Cillian Murphy spent nearly a decade portraying working-class Brummie gangster Tommy Shelby in Steven Knight’s British crime drama, Peaky Blinders.
Inspired by the real-life gang of the same name, the six-season series followed the Shelby family’s business dealings, relationships, unsavory acts, and pursuits of power in Birmingham, England, 1919. Thanks to compelling writing, word of mouth, a Netflix streaming slot, and standout performances from a stacked cast — especially Murphy’s — what started as a small show on BBC Two in 2013 grew into a global phenomenon.
Oppenheimer’s immense scale and widespread acclaim may have solidified Murphy as a household name, but in the years leading up to the monumental project, Peaky Blinders allowed him to meticulously refine his craft, wholly inhabit a character, and take his acting prowess to the next level. A decade after the riveting series premiered, Tommy Shelby remains one of the actor’s most indelible roles — a truth even more impressive when you learn that Murphy wasn’t Knight’s first choice for the Peaky protagonist.
That’s right. The 47-year-old Irish actor nearly lost the role of Tommy Shelby to Jason Statham, but a text sent to Knight post-audition, which read, “Remember, I’m an actor,” changed everything. Ahead of Peaky Blinders’ final season, Knight told Esquire he “never forgot” Murphy’s show of confidence. Despite the clear departure from his appearance and past roles, the actor was sure he could embody the physically imposing, virile gang leader. And he was right. “It’s a cliché, but no one else could have been Tommy Shelby,” Knight admitted later in the interview. “It would be absurd. It was as if Cillian was always waiting.”
Since Murphy first rode through the gritty Birmingham streets on horseback sporting a fresh undercut and a razor-trimmed cap pulled over his eyes, the role felt as bespoke as one of Tommy’s signature three-piece suits. On the surface, Murphy nailed the Birmingham accent, convincingly knocked back lowball glasses of whiskey, confidently handled a gun, and seductively smoked thousands of cigarettes on set. But his abilities to access and expose the deeper complexities, contradictions, and PTSD of the broken World War I veteran were particularly profound.
As the leader of the tight-knit Shelby clan, Tommy was a commanding, ambitious, fiercely intelligent force; an enigma who routinely committed despicable acts, but possessed enough potential for good that he repeatedly gained empathy from viewers — with help from Murphy’s charisma and authentically pained portrayal. Haunted by flashbacks of France and fueled by booze for a majority of the series, the Peaky Blinders leader perpetually grappled with a restless mind and stained soul, while guarding a heart capable of immense love. He was, all at once, completely unafraid of his own death and terrified of losing others. And since business was always personal, his family became his greatest strength and most sizable weakness.
A fraternal feeling and the sheer weight of familial responsibility shone strongest in scenes with Paul Anderson’s Arthur, while Tommy’s intimate relationship with Helen McCrory’s Aunt Polly — which deepened and shifted on the daily — peeled back his layers and offered glimpses of vulnerabilities. Tommy’s shell was undeniably softest with Grace (Annabelle Wallis), the woman who made a tea drinker, father, and eventual fortress out of him. Through small talk and genuinely sexy sex scenes, heart-to-hearts and heartbreak, and the brutal gut-punch of unexpected mourning, Murphy tapped into the full range of human emotions to convey and process the love and loss of Tommy’s wife. He never fully recovered from her death, but devastating breakdowns after the loss of Polly and his daughter Ruby proved he was still able to feel.
Murphy effortlessly exuded swagger, showed subtle humor in moments like the famous “no fucking fighting” scene, and slipped into pure panic at the drop of a hat. He loudly expressed grief in palpable scenes, such as Tommy’s brush with death in the Season 2 finale — when he almost had (and lost) “fucking everything” — or the bone-chilling final seconds of Season 5, when he hopelessly held a gun to his head, emitting a guttural scream born from insufferable trauma and fury. But despite the grand outbursts, so much of Tommy’s emotions were expressed without words; through Murphy’s facial expressions, jaw clenches, silent spirals, and intense gazes from his deep-set ice-blue portals.
Whether Tommy was strutting through smoky streets in solitude, leading grand shootouts with adversaries like Luca Changretta (Adrien Brody), digesting Alfie Solomons’ (Tom Hardy) verbal acrobatics, recovering from ruthless beatings, chomping on a leaf with his toddler, or battling his inner demons, Murphy’s performance was mesmerizing. Over the course of Peaky Blinders’ run, the actor brilliantly resided in the middle-ground between hero and villain, light and dark, and savior and sinner. And without fail, he flawlessly found his way back under the multi-faceted character’s skin after substantial filming gaps and major projects like Dunkirk and A Quiet Place Part II. In the 36 hours we got to spend with him on-screen, Murphy delivered a career-great performance, crafting an incredibly lived-in character, while masterfully evolving alongside him.
A decade after Peaky Blinders first premiered, it remains a razor-sharp series that boasts Knight’s brilliant storytelling; captivating characters; stunning set design, wardrobes, and haircuts; a killer soundtrack led by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds’ “Red Right Hand”; and a cast that was firing on all cylinders. The series’ legacy is as strong as the Shelby family in their prime, and when the credits roll on the dark final season — one made considerably more challenging by COVID-19 and the real-life death and mourning of McCrory — you’re reminded again that no one else could have been Tommy Shelby; that Cillian Murphy, as promised in his post-audition text, is one hell of an actor.'
With breathtaking cinematography, this first episode of a new documentary series explores environments including the fiords of Norway and the open sea, as well as the creatures—and people—that inhabit them.
With breathtaking cinematography, this first episode of a new documentary series explores environments including the fiords of Norway and the open sea, as well as the creatures—and people—that inhabit them.
But there’s a quiet revolution under way in nature cinematography, as evidenced by the kind of startlingly beautiful and intimate imagery that distinguishes “Life on the Edge,” the first chapter in the three-part “Wild Scandinavia.” The hourlong episode depicts landscapes that are breathtaking; characters that are hairy, finned and feathered; struggles that are fierce. But the wonderment inspired by the pictures may have as much to do with the how as it does with the what and the why.
Wild Scandinavia: Life on the Edge Wednesday, 8 p.m., PBS Narrated by Rebecca Ferguson (currently of the sci-fi series “Silo”), the show surveys the sandy flats of southern Denmark, the volcanoes of Iceland, the dense forests of Sweden and, most dramatically in the initial installment, the vast coasts of Norway and its fabled fiords—glacier-sculpted canyons carved in the last ice age and flooded by seawater.
You can watch Wild Scandinavia on PBS
#101 - Life on the EdgeExplore Scandinavia's wild and unpredictable coast, a place of haunting beauty and dangerous extremes. This journey begins around the Swedish Baltic Sea, which includes iconic fjords; home to eagles, otters, base jumpers, and orcas.
#102 - HeartlandsJourney to the enchanted Scandinavian Forest, an ancient land shrouded in myth and legend. Elusive wolves and lynx stalk this secret world, while osprey and reindeer survive the ever-changing seasons through surprising and ancient alliances.
#103 - Fire and IceDiscover Scandinavia's kingdoms of fire and ice. Awake under the long polar night, Muskoxen, polar bears, and arctic foxes must navigate the dramatic transformation of their world as it melts into a sleepless rush of life under the midnight sun.
Thursday, May 11 at 1am TPT 2Saturday, May 13 at 2pm TPT 2Sunday, May 14 at 7pm TPT LIFEMonday, May 15 at 1am TPT LIFETuesday, May 16 at 2pm TPT 2
NEW Wednesday, May 17 at 7pm TPT 2Thursday, May 18 at 1am TPT 2Saturday, May 20 at 2pm TPT 2Sunday, May 21 at 7pm TPT LIFEMonday, May 22 at 1am TPT LIFETuesday, May 23 at 2pm TPT 2
NEW Wednesday, May 24 at 7pm TPT 2Thursday, May 25 at 1am TPT 2Saturday, May 27 at 2pm TPT 2Sunday, May 28 at 7pm TPT LIFEMonday, May 29 at 1am TPT LIFETuesday, May 30 at 2pm TPT 2
MARYLAND: BBC TO BROADCAST PLAY ADAPTATION STARRING ZAWE ASHTON
The BBC will broadcast the television adaptation of Maryland this month, a play by one of the UK’s leading playwrights about the culture of violence against women.
First seen at the Royal Court in London in 2021 and a fictional artistic response to recent real-life events, the play grapples with the violence women are forced to reckon with in their everyday lives.
This new 30-minute adaptation, co-directed with acclaimed documentary-maker Brian Hill, tells the story of two everywomen, both called Mary, and a chorus of modern day furies as they deliver their stories of assault.
Zawe Ashton and Hayley Squires play the lead roles of two individual Marys, who meet at a police station in the aftermath of their respective sexual assaults.
They are supported by a cast of furies who rail against the injustices the women face both in the events of the play, and in the wider world.
Lucy Kirkwood says: “I wrote the original play as a howl against the way we have normalised violence against women as something to be accommodated by women themselves, rather than protested by all of us...
"Against the way that women, especially women of colour, cannot at present even rely on the forces of law and order to protect or respect their bodies...
"Against the recent deaths of women including Sarah Everard, Bibaa Henry, Nicole Smallman and Sabina Nessa in particular, and the anxiety and fear which we culture girls to expect and accept in general.
"I hope the film will give new oxygen to that protest, but I wish it was not still such an urgent conversation.”
Suzy Klein, Head of Arts and Classical Music TV at the BBC, says: “Lucy Kirkwood is one of the most exciting voices in British theatre, whose work has won awards for its portrayal of issues around social justice, climate change and politics.
"Maryland brings Lucy’s searing, incisive vision to the issue of male violence against women and I’m really proud to have it broadcast on the BBC with this extraordinary cast...
"It’s not a piece that gives any easy answers to one of the most pressing social problems of our time, but it’s impossible to look away from this compelling play - a work brought to us by one of the most trusted and sensitive voices in contemporary drama.”
It will TX on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer on 20 July at 10pm. (x)