The story of Tommy Shelby reaches a pivotal moment this week with the release of the feature film Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man, hitting cinemas on Friday, 6th March. While this film will conclude Tommy’s storyline, it is not expected to mark the end of the Peaky Blinders franchise, as a new sequel series focused on the next generation of the Shelby family is already in the works.
After its cinematic debut, the film will become available on Netflix on 20th March. As fans prepare to say goodbye to Cillian Murphy’s portrayal of Tommy Shelby and anticipate the fresh chapter in Birmingham’s notorious gang saga, many are only now discovering the true historical background behind the BBC drama.
Although the gripping events depicted in the series are fictional, they are inspired by a real-life gang known as the Peaky Blinders. However, the show’s timeline, beginning shortly after World War I in 1919, differs greatly from history. The actual Peaky Blinders operated primarily in the 1880s, decades before the series’ setting.
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Historical records, including an 1890 article in the Birmingham Mail, provide evidence that the term “Peaky Blinders” was commonly used on Birmingham streets during the late 19th century. Yet, this real gang was much smaller in scale and notoriety compared to the Shelby family dramatized for television.
While the TV gang commits extravagant crimes and engages in elaborate conflicts, the real Peaky Blinders were known mostly for street-level robbery and violence, lacking the sweeping criminal empire portrayed onscreen.
Historian Dr. Amy Boyington also weighed in on the gang’s legacy, confirming that the truth is “far less glamorous” than the show’s depiction. According to Dr. Boyington, the name “Peaky Blinders” likely derives from “peaky” referring to the peaked flat caps worn by gang members and “blinder,” a Birmingham slang term for someone well-dressed or sharp in appearance.
Indeed, the gang was infamous for its stylish attire—tailored suits, caps, silk scarves, and starch collars—which made them easily identifiable both to rival gangs and the police. Despite their polished looks, these men were ruthless criminals, involved in serious violence and even murder. For example, gang member George Williams killed a police officer, underscoring the gang’s brutal reputation.
The show also features other real gangs, notably the Birmingham Boys led by Billy Kimber, played by Charlie Creed-Miles. Kimber was a prominent organized crime figure in early 20th-century Britain who formed the Birmingham Boys toward the end of the Edwardian era.
However, the series took creative liberties with Kimber’s character, such as giving him a Cockney accent—despite his Aston origins in Birmingham—and dramatizing his death. In the show, Tommy Shelby shoots Kimber, but in reality, Kimber died peacefully at age 63 in a nursing home in 1945, long after his gang’s influence had faded.
By the time of Kimber’s death, the criminal landscape in Birmingham had shifted, with the Sabini gang replacing the Birmingham Boys as the dominant force—a group also fictionalized in the series.
Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man will be in cinemas from 6th March and available on Netflix from 20th March, marking both an end and a new beginning for this legendary story.