Peaky Blinders

THE crowd gasps. Arched backwards in a dramatic display, a woman has just breathed fire across the audience.

She continues dancing, swinging flaming sticks against the inky night while a flatcap-wearing crowd looks on, transfixed.

I’ve arrived at Black Country Living Museum in Dudley, near Birmingham, which was crowned the best large visitor attraction in England last year.

There for a special Peaky Blinders night, I enter a replica village featuring streets any fan will recognise – as this is a filming location for the hit series.

The show’s creator, Steven Knight, has gone as far as describing the museum as “home”.

The event costs £21 and instructions are enticingly vague: “Arrive in 1920s attire and expect mayhem.”

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Judging by the fire dancers at the entrance, I’m in for one hell of a night.

Wobbling across the cobbles in heels, I’m wrapped warmly in a thick trenchcoat. If someone had told me I’d accidentally wandered back in time to the actual 1920s, I could have believed them.

Visitors drift between functional stores, from a post office to a barber shop, where one teen exchanged £15 for a Shelby-inspired undercut while their girlfriend laughed from the sidelines.

At the bottom, past a WWI memorial, sits a ruckus of flashing gold fairground rides.

It is so authentic, the only indication that I’m standing on a film set and not a real street corner is the vintage signage and outfits.

I’m jolted to attention by a 1920s car rumbling towards me, open-topped and overflowing with cackling passengers.

“I swear that was Ada,” someone remarks, in a nod to Arthur Shelby’s daughter in the show.

In dim lighting, strangers do have a habit of morphing into familiar faces.

Down a flight of steps sits Canal Street Bridge, a secret meeting place for Ada and Freddie. From there, I can see queues forming for the village pubs, as jaunty piano tunes drift from their doorways.

Having snagged a £4.50 bottle of Cobra, my attention is drawn towards two storefronts: a bakery and a traditional sweet shop. For £10, I secure a bag of lemon sherbets, lemon bonbons and cinder toffee.

Clutching my treats, I teeter down the steps of Canal Street Bridge to enter Charlie’s Yard. This sits on the banks of a canal, where Charlie Strong smuggles illicit goods for the Shelbys.

“Welcome to 1910,” a chainmaker yells, wielding a hammer over a glowing link.

This event is strictly 16+ , and judging by the three street brawls I’ve witnessed already, that’s probably for the best. All incidents involved actors and the colourful language sparked waves of giggles.

My final hurrah is horse racing at St James’ School.

Shuttled into wooden rows, the atmosphere is electric and, after picking their horses, everybody is on the edge of their seats.

Celebrating the flutter with a portion of fish and chips “to go”, it’s time for the steady walk to the exit. By 10.30pm, it feels like I’ve just scratched the surface.

Straddling 29 acres, the site has events exploding on a spitfire schedule. Catching it all seems impossible.

Ticket included, I’ve spent around £50, so this evening has been a steal.

Like Cillian Murphy, I’m leaving with a “great fondness” for the Black Country Living Museum.

The Shelby legacy is alive and well.

Peaky Blinders fans were left baffled over Arthur Shelby’s glaring absence.

Peaky Blinders’ Arthur Shelby actor has finally opened up about his absence from The Immortal Man.

Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man is on Netflix and the follow-up film explores Tommy Shelby’s (played by Cillian Murphy) redemption arc as he attempts to right his wrongs.

The Peaky Blinders film, which sees Barry Keoghan star as Tommy’s son Duke Shelby, focuses on the father and son relationship as Duke begins to head down a dangerous path.

Tommy, reluctant to return to his family, is forced to face the demons of his past following an unprecedented tragedy and viewers discover some hidden secrets about Tommy’s life in the events between the series and the film.

The film begins with Tommy living away from his family in a derelict mansion, which features a graveyard he regularly visits.

Viewers were shocked to see Arthur Shelby’s name written on one of the gravestones, and here is all you need to know about actor Paul Anderson’s absence.

Why is Paul Anderson not in The Immortal Man?

Arthur Shelby was last seen in season six of the flagship series, while he was battling an opium addiction following a relapse.

Paul Anderson played Arthur in all six seasons of the show, and is one of only three stars to have appeared in every episode, besides Cillian Murphy and Sophie Rundle.

Anderson opened up on the film and his absence to LADbible, explaining: “Well, what can you do eh? It is how it is. I thought I’d just leave them to it. I think it’s great. I [wasn’t] very nice to people in it [the series]. But people loved me.”

Creator Steven Knight said there were no plans to bring Anderson back, telling The Hollywood Reporter his character had been written out of the film.

He explained: “What I’ll say is that the story determines the cast, and the story was set. I knew that Tommy needed to have done something that he couldn’t forgive himself for.

“Therefore, that’s why the plot went in that particular direction. But in terms of Paul, all I’ll say is that he’s a fantastic actor.”

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What happened to Arthur Shelby in Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man?

In the sequel film, Tommy was seen living in isolation as he was haunted by the ghosts of his past, including his brother, Arthur.

He often visited his brother’s grave, though it was not mentioned for a long time how his brother really died.

At first it was suggested he had died by suicide, but by the end of the film Tommy revealed what really happened as a flashback played out on screen.

He explained how he had killed his own brother in a drunken fit of rage, while they were both in a car together.

Tommy was seen strangling Arthur during a struggle, which ended with Arthur laying lifeless and Tommy almost instantly regretting his actions.

Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man is on Netflix

Peaky Blinders fans are curious about the fate of Tommy Shelby’s second wife

Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man arrived on Netflix recently, however, fans have been left confused by some notable absences.

The movie focuses on Tommy Shelby (played by Cillian Murphy) coming out of exile to save his son Duke Shelby (Barry Keoghan) from a Nazi plot to win WWII.

But missing from Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man is Arthur Shelby (Paul Anderson), Finn Shelby (Harry Kirton), and Lizzie Shelby (Natasha O’Keeffe) among other major characters. Here’s a look at Lizzie’s fate in Peaky Blinders.

What happened to Lizzie in Peaky Blinders?

WARNING: This article contains spoilers from the Peaky Blinders TV show

Season 6 of Peaky Blinders saw Lizzie finally leaving Tommy after the death of their daughter Ruby (Heaven-Leigh Clee) proved too much. Tommy was nowhere to be found as Ruby lay dying in hospital from consumption.

The gangster was off trying to lift a curse he believed had been put on Ruby after Tommy had given away a cursed sapphire, which was believed to be responsible for the deaths of Grace Shelby (Annabelle Wallis) and another child.

When Tommy returned to Birmingham, he believed he’d managed to lift the curse, but Ruby was already dead. A devastated Lizzie wondered where her husband had been.

Get Netflix free with Sky

This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. Learn more

£5.99

£0

Sky

Get the deal here

Sky is giving away a free Netflix subscription with its new Sky Stream TV bundles, including the £15 Essential TV plan.

This lets members watch live and on-demand TV content without a satellite dish or aerial and includes hit shows like Stranger Things and The Last of Us.

To make matters worse, Lizzie was also heartbroken after Tommy slept with Diana Mitford (Amber Anderson). The move saw Tommy trying to win the trust of fascist MP Oswald Mosley (Sam Claflin), but it meant infidelity on his part.

In her parting words, Lizzie said: “You are cursed Tommy. Never to understand the limits that other people will accept.

“Never to be allowed in where everybody else is. Cursed never to be lifted.”

When Tommy said he would be gone for a while, Lizzie showed him her hands empty of wedding rings and said she was “already packed”.

She told him so just wanted to “say goodbye to Ruby”, before she finally left him forever.

Lizzie couldn’t take son Charles Shelby either and told the boy that Tommy wouldn’t allow it. In the movie, it’s revealed that Charles is fighting on the frontline in North Africa.

Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man is streaming on Netflix now