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Episode two
It’s only when you hear broad Birmingham accents on TV that you realise how chronically under-represented our second city has always been. Perhaps ‘Peaky Blinders’ will herald a long overdue era of Brumsploitation – it’s certainly good enough to launch a few imitators.
Tonight, the meaning of the title is graphically illustrated as Cillian Murphy’s Tommy has a profound difference of opinion with some gypsies. Tommy also continues his slow-burning joust with Churchill’s cop Campbell (Sam Neill) – he appears to be gaining the upper hand, but does Campbell still hold a trump card?
Directors Otto Bathurst and Tom Harper make hay with Birmingham’s ominous but picturesque urban gloom and the city’s post-war turmoil rings true. At this stage Tommy still feels like a closed book, but events are surely conspiring to expose him to the glaring light very soon indeed. Excellent grimy fun.