Tag: Thomas Shelby

Categories Peaky Blinders

Peaky Blinders veteran Sophie Rundle remembers late Helen McCrory: “It’s devastating that she’s not here to finish it”

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This article first appeared in Radio Times magazine.

You’ve been playing Ada for 13 years, do you look back at those early performances?

I find it so awkward watching them. Who is that child who clearly doesn’t know what she’s doing? Also, I now have my babies. So, my Peaky bookends for me are young girl straight out of drama school and being a newly postpartum mother. My second son was 12 or 13 weeks old when we did the film.

Did that make filming The Immortal Man tough?

Maybe being that tired and delirious was quite helpful but it was an enormous undertaking. The Peaky team were amazing but it’s crazy to be filmed at this time where I’m really vulnerable and my body is different and I don’t quite know what I’m doing. I am petitioning for a little ticker tape to run across the bottom of the screen saying, “This woman has just had a baby.”

Continue reading Peaky Blinders veteran Sophie Rundle remembers late Helen McCrory: “It’s devastating that she’s not here to finish it”

Categories Peaky Blinders

“The Immortal Man” Includes A Perfect Tribute To Helen McCrory

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Aunt Polly finds a way to affect the events of “The Immortal Man”

Jeremy Mathai | Yahoo News | March 20, 2026
Helen McCrory as Polly Gray wearing a red dress and smirking in a crowded room in Peaky Blinders

Spoiler warning: Read no further if you haven’t yet watched “The Immortal Man,” by order of the Peaky Blinders.

As viewers fire up “The Immortal Man” on Netflix, their elation at the next (but not final) chapter of the story may be tempered by the noticeable lack of some key “Peaky Blinders” characters missing from action this time around. Tommy Shelby’s (Cillian Murphy) estranged wife Lizzie (Natasha O’Keeffe) went her separate ways in season 6 of the show, as did Harry Kirton’s Finn. That extends to other familiar faces like Tom Hardy’s Alfie Solomons, Paul Anderson’s Arthur Shelby (although the character technically does appear in shadowy flashbacks), and even Tommy’s late love Grace (Annabelle Wallis), who has continually haunted our main protagonist as a ghost throughout the series.

Writer and series creator Steven Knight opted not to bring these characters back for the spin-off film, and for good reason, but he did make room for one beloved figure in particular. The late, great actor Helen McCrory quickly turned the Shelby family matriarch Polly Gray into a fan-favorite over the last several years. Tragically, her passing in 2021 was a heartbreaking blow to the entire cast and crew, and Knight decided to write Aunt Polly out of the show altogether for the final season. Her presence continues to linger wherever Tommy goes, however, and that proves to be the case in “The Immortal Man,” as well.

Continue reading “The Immortal Man” Includes A Perfect Tribute To Helen McCrory

Categories Peaky Blinders

Cillian Murphy pays tribute to ‘dear friend’ Helen McCrory

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‘One of the greatest human beings’ he has ever had the pleasure of knowing

Olivia Burke | LADBible | March 12,2026

LONDON, ENGLAND – MAY 03: Cillian Murphy and Helen McCrory during a Q&A at the Premiere of BBC Two’s drama “Peaky Blinders” episode one, series three at BFI Southbank on May 3, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Anthony Harvey/Getty Images)

Peaky Blinders has made an almighty comeback in cinematic form – but for both the cast and the fans, Helen McCrory has left a void that can’t be filled.

Five years on from the death of the late and great actress, her on-screen family members who became her close friends have spoken of how they still feel the ache of her absence.

Speaking to LADbible ahead of the release of Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man, Cillian Murphy opened up about the ‘massive loss’ he experienced following the passing of his on-screen aunt.

Viewers were first introduced to McCrory’s iconic character, Polly Gray, in the pilot episode of Steven Knight’s hit series, which aired way back in 2013.

Formidable, fiercely protective and gifted with an insight into what will unfold in the future, the matriarch of the Shelby family is unforgettable in more ways than one.

Continue reading Cillian Murphy pays tribute to ‘dear friend’ Helen McCrory

Categories Peaky Blinders Print Media

‘Peaky Blinders’ EP Caryn Mandabach on How Tommy – and Aunt Polly – Got the Series Finale They Deserved

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Farewell to Aunt Polly

Emily Vogel | The Wrap | July 14, 2022

Despite “Peaky Blinders” being centered on a gang in the 1900s with razor blades sewed into their caps, it’s the women – both on and off the screen – who are the sharpest of the bunch. Leading the pack is executive producer Caryn Mandabach, whose company Caryn Mandabach Productions owns and operates the Peaky Blinders IP. “I’m the studio, as we would say in America…. Pretend I’m Sony” she told WrapWomen during a recent Zoom interview.

But being the boss is a double-edged razor. On one end, Mandabach gets to oversee exciting projects like partnering with Bushmills Irish Whiskey on a special Peaky Blinders recipe. On the other, Mandabach must always keep her business cap on – no matter how tough the situation.

Continue reading ‘Peaky Blinders’ EP Caryn Mandabach on How Tommy – and Aunt Polly – Got the Series Finale They Deserved

Categories Peaky Blinders Print Media Tributes

Cillian Murphy: Final Season of ‘Peaky Blinders’ Is ‘Richest and Deepest’ to Date

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“I think the whole series is really in tribute to her and to honor her”

Monica Marie Zorrilla | Variety | February 11, 2022

Cillian Murphy was named one of the greatest Irish film actors in 2020 and has been nominated for multiple international awards over a 25-year career. But in stepping into an executive producing role in recent years, the “Peaky Blinders” star and frequent Christopher Nolan collaborator is discovering another side to the craft that’s been a humbling experience.

“I had to look at my own performances in a very cold and objective way,” Murphy tells Variety. “I think it’s a valuable lesson to look at the story in its entirety, without just, like, focusing on the size of your ears.”

When Murphy became a producer on Seasons 5 and 6 of “Peaky Blinders,” he had to take on new duties such as helping the edit team after long days of working as an actor and analyzing his portrayal of Tommy Shelby, the protagonist of the ruthless BBC period crime drama.

Continue reading Cillian Murphy: Final Season of ‘Peaky Blinders’ Is ‘Richest and Deepest’ to Date