List of Peaky Blinders episodes
Peaky Blinders is a British crime drama television series created by Steven Knight, that premiered on BBC Two on 12 September 2013. The series is primarily set in Birmingham, England, and follows the exploits of the Shelby crime family in the aftermath of World War I. The following is a list of episodes, listed in order of their original air date, along with brief plot descriptions.
As of 22 September 2019, 30 episodes of Peaky Blinders have aired, concluding the fifth series.
Overview
| Season | Episodes | Originally aired | Average UK viewers (millions)[lower-alpha 1] | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First aired | Last aired | Network | |||||
| 1 | 6 | September 12, 2013 | October 17, 2013 | BBC Two | 2.38 | ||
| 2 | 6 | October 2, 2014 | November 6, 2014 | 2.18 | |||
| 3 | 6 | May 5, 2016 | June 9, 2016 | 2.85 | |||
| 4 | 6 | November 15, 2017 | December 20, 2017 | 4.05 | |||
| 5 | 6 | August 25, 2019 | September 22, 2019 | BBC One | 7.20 | ||
- The average rating for the first two series have been calculated using 7-day viewing figures, while the ratings for the latter three series use 28-day viewing figures.
Episodes
Series 1 (2013)
| No. overall | No. in series | Episode | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | UK viewers (millions) [1][lower-alpha 1] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Episode 1 | Otto Bathurst | Steven Knight | September 12, 2013 | 3.05 | |
| In 1919, following the Great War, the Peaky Blinders, led by Thomas "Tommy" Shelby, appropriates a consignment of guns from the local arms factory. Winston Churchill sends Inspector Campbell to Birmingham to retrieve the guns. Campbell reviews Tommy's record, which notes that he was a decorated former sergeant major. Aunt Polly urges Tommy to return the guns, but he feels that he can use them to his advantage. His brother Arthur does not agree with Tommy about fixing horse races, believing it will cause trouble with Billy Kimber, who runs the races. Inspector Campbell and his men capture Arthur and beat him while inquiring about the gun robbery. Campbell propositions Arthur and the gang to work with him to find the guns. Tommy's sister Ada is involved with Freddie Thorne, a communist. Barmaid Grace starts working at the bar. Unbeknownst to the Peaky Blinders, she has been placed in Birmingham by Inspector Campbell to help find the guns. Danny has another PTSD episode and kills an Italian business owner. To avoid a war with the Italians, Tommy agrees to kill Danny, with the Italians watching from across the canal. However, Danny's death is faked and he goes to London on a special assignment. | |||||||
| 2 | 2 | Episode 2 | Otto Bathurst | Steven Knight | September 19, 2013 | 2.45 | |
| Tommy, Arthur and John meet up with the Lees to look at a horse for the next race. The Lees insult the Peaky Blinders, a fight breaks out and later Tommy receives a bullet with his name on it. Campbell's special force launches a surprise crackdown, targeting communists and looking for the guns. Freddie and Ada manage to escape, but Freddie has to leave town. Campbell confronts Polly and attacks all the Shelby establishments. In retaliation, Tommy arranges for a reporter to write about a protest burning of the King's picture, which prompts Churchill to pressure Campbell. Tommy meets with Campbell and gives him an ultimatum: if the Peaky Blinders are left alone, he will return the guns; if the Inspector interferes with his plans, Tommy will send the guns to the IRA and ruin Campbell's work in Belfast. Campbell agrees but later instructs Grace to get close to Tommy and find the location of the guns. Polly realises Ada is pregnant and tells Tommy, who threatens to kill Freddie. However, he later tells Freddie to take Ada away; Freddie instead proposes to Ada and decides to stay in town. Billy Kimber and his men confront the Shelbys, but Tommy convinces them to join forces in fighting the Lees, their common enemy. | |||||||
| 3 | 3 | Episode 3 | Otto Bathurst | Steven Knight | September 26, 2013 | 2.20 | |
| Ada and Freddie marry; Aunt Polly gives them money to leave the country. Despite Tommy's best efforts to keep the guns a secret, it seems that people keep finding out about them, including two IRA members. Grace overhears them trying to blackmail Tommy and follows one of them, but he attacks her. Grace manages to shoot her attacker dead in self defence. Tommy warns Kimber that Lee's people will once again rob Kimber's bookies at the races. Tommy brings Grace as his date to Cheltenham races in an attempt to distract Kimber as well as convince him that he should hire the Blinders as his security. Kimber agrees if he can have some time alone with Grace, Tommy agrees. At the last minute, he has a change of heart and claims that Grace is actually a prostitute with 'the clap' (syphilis). Freddie decides Tommy is not going to scare him off and returns. | |||||||
| 4 | 4 | Episode 4 | Tom Harper | Steven Knight, Stephen Russell | October 3, 2013 | 2.31 | |
| Tommy makes his business legitimate by obtaining a betting licence. Although he does not quite trust her and is suspicious of her, Tommy hires Grace as his secretary. John calls the family together to tell them he has decided his four children need a mother: he has decided he wants to marry Lizzie, a local prostitute. Tommy disapproves because he does not think Lizzie has given up her former profession. The Lees rob the Shelbys' gambling den as revenge for the Peaky Blinders having protected Billy Kimber's bookies at the races. Tommy decides to call a truce with the Lee family so that he can have an ally against Billy Kimber and marries John to Lees' daughter Esme to consummate the agreement. Ada comes to the wedding but goes into labour soon after. Freddie comes to see the new baby but is arrested when he shows up. | |||||||
| 5 | 5 | Episode 5 | Tom Harper | Steven Knight, Toby Finlay | October 10, 2013 | 2.03 | |
| Believing Tommy betrayed Freddie, Ada does not want to see or speak to her family. Although Arthur Sr. (Tommy Flanagan) deserted the family a decade ago, he comes back into town. Tommy wants nothing to do with him, but Arthur Jr. believes he has changed and wants to do anything to help him, including financing the opening of hotels in America. However, Arthur Sr. takes off with the money Arthur Jr. gave him. When Arthur Jr. finally tracks his father down, Arthur Sr. admits he never had any plans and felt that the Shelby family owed him. An IRA member starts inquiring about the man Grace killed. Grace and Tommy kill the other IRA members. Now in love with Tommy, Grace tells Inspector Campbell, if she gives him the location of the guns, he has to leave Tommy and his family alone. She suspects the guns are buried in a false grave after discovering that Danny is not really dead, but in London on business for the Shelby family. Grace gives up the location to Inspector Campbell and resigns service to the crown. As she has resigned, and the guns found, with the exception of one, Inspector Campbell proposes marriage, which Grace rejects. | |||||||
| 6 | 6 | Episode 6 | Tom Harper | Steven Knight | October 17, 2013 | 2.24 | |
| Inspector Campbell knows that Grace has been with Tommy. Nevertheless, he confirms to Winston Churchill that Grace should receive some commendation for her part in finding the missing guns. Polly meets with Grace to reveal she knows Grace's secret and that she will never forgive her. The Peaky Blinders, led by Danny, spring Freddie from jail. Tommy gathers the Peaky Blinders and the Lees to take on Kimber's men at the tracks, but Kimber catches the Shelbys off guard and outnumbered by confronting them at home. Freddie helps the Peaky Blinders by bringing out the machine gun from the stolen weapons, but Ada jumps into the middle of the shoot out trying to bring peace. Kimber fires off at the Peaky Blinders, injuring Tommy and killing Danny. Tommy, in turn, shoots Kimber dead. Tommy meets Grace and she tells him she loves him and will go to London for a few days; she has an idea of how they can be together. Tommy writes a letter and flips a coin to decide if he will go with Grace. As this happens, Campbell confronts Grace at the railway station and points his pistol at her. As the scene fades, there is a gunshot. | |||||||
Series 2 (2014)
| No. overall | No. in series | Episode | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | UK viewers (millions) [1][lower-alpha 2] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | 1 | Episode 1 | Colm McCarthy | Steven Knight | October 2, 2014 | 2.31 | |
| Grace shoots Campbell, leaving him lying in his own blood. Two years later, the Garrison is blown up while the family is attending Freddie Thorne's funeral. Tommy tries to get Ada to come back home as he is planning an expansion to London. Tommy goes to the Black Lion to confront those who he thinks blew up the Garrison. Instead, he's taken to meet with the IRA and asked to murder someone – which he does. Tommy is informed that Campbell, now a major, is returning to Birmingham. The Shelby family has a meeting regarding the expansion of the bookie business, but Polly and Esme, John's wife, have reservations. Nonetheless, Tommy, Arthur, and John decide to get familiar with the London scene and cause a rumpus at Darby Sabini's club. Polly visits a medium for information on her children that were taken from her, which Esme discovers before being sworn to secrecy by Polly. Tommy hires Lizzie as his secretary. In retaliation for tearing up Sabini's club, Sabini has his thugs kidnap and attempt to rape Ada, as well as beat Tommy to within an inch of his life. Major Campbell intervenes before Sabini and his men can finish him off. Campbell has agreed with Winston Churchill that Tommy will be useful to them. | |||||||
| 8 | 2 | Episode 2 | Colm McCarthy | Steven Knight | October 9, 2014 | 2.18 | |
| Major Campbell visits Tommy in the hospital and threatens him with the knowledge that he knows about the murder Tommy committed for the IRA, and has clearly had Tommy under surveillance for some time. Tommy discharges himself from hospital early and takes a barge down to London. Tommy meets with vicious gang-leader Alfie Solomons (Tom Hardy) in Camden Town. Tommy has a hard time convincing Alfie that he should align with the Peaky Blinders against Sabini. Tommy tracks down Ada, and buys her a house as a means of laundering money. He also buys Polly a house. Esme has told Tommy about Polly trying to track down her children. Tommy tells Polly her daughter is dead, but he has managed to track down her son. Unfortunately, due to the law, Polly is unable to track down her son until he is 18 years of age. Arthur's flashbacks from the war are getting worse, and during one, he kills a boy during sparring. He starts using cocaine to self-medicate. Following the reopening of the Garrison, Polly's son, Michael shows up on her doorstep. | |||||||
| 9 | 3 | Episode 3 | Colm McCarthy | Steven Knight | October 16, 2014 | 2.20 | |
| The Shelby brothers hire the Digbeth Kid, a neighbourhood boy who loves cowboy movies, to get stood up for gambling to help the local cops meet their arrest quota. While in jail, Sabini's thugs murder the Digbeth Kid to get back at the Peaky Blinders for their intrusion on his turf. Polly and Michael try to get to know each other. Tommy and John meet with Billy, of the Black Country Boys, who fought with them in the war. Tommy tells Billy to round up his men for them to go to work in Camden Town for Alfie Solomons. Arthur is threatened by the mother of the boy he killed. Tommy tells Major Campbell that the officers played a joke on him and have boarded him in a house that is owned by a not-so-former Madam. The Shelby boys and Michael go to an auction to purchase a horse and meet horse trainer May Carleton. | |||||||
| 10 | 4 | Episode 4 | Colm McCarthy | Steven Knight | October 23, 2014 | 2.06 | |
| Tommy meets with his Irish handlers and discovers they are backed by Major Campbell and the Crown. They order another hit, but Tommy turns them down. Arthur and boys attack one of Sabini's clubs. Michael requests that Tommy gives him a job. Tommy hires May Carleton to train his horse. Tommy wants to export whisky to America and Canada – currently under prohibition. Arthur's cocaine habit is starting to get out of control and Tommy tells him to straighten up. Tommy visits Ada and finds out she has a lodger named James (Josh O'Connor). James is an artist, but Ada explains to Tommy, James is not interested in women. Tommy tells Ada he has set up a trust fund for John's children and her son, Karl. Alfie Solomons and Darby Sabini meet and patch up their differences. Michael and his new friend Isaiah, Jeremiah Jesus' son, try to drink in a bar, but get into a fight because they do not want a black man drinking there. Michael and Isaiah return to the Garrison, but when John and Arthur find out that the Shelby name was disrespected, they burn the bar. Tommy calls Grace in London but immediately hangs up without saying anything when a man answers. | |||||||
| 11 | 5 | Episode 5 | Colm McCarthy | Steven Knight | October 30, 2014 | 2.10 | |
| Alfie Solomons hosts a Passover Seder and invites unaware Arthur and some of his men; who are soon equally slaughtered and has Arthur sent to prison. Major Campbell has Michael arrested as well. Sabini and the now gruesomely scarred Mario take back control of the Eden Club. Tommy finds his fledgeling empire crumbling before him, as his power-base in London is obliterated. Tommy struggles to save his family and regain the upper hand, as the tentative Black Country/Brum alliance is in tatters after the untimely death of Billy Kitchen. Tommy further complicates his love life, by escorting the returning Grace to a passionate date, though still stringing May along, who had earlier expressed her feelings for him. Having slept with Tommy, Grace admits being in London with her husband to procure fertility treatment. Campbell forces Polly to have sex with him, in exchange for Michael's freedom. Tommy attempts to end his romantic relationship with May, though he still wants her to continue training his horse. | |||||||
| 12 | 6 | Episode 6 | Colm McCarthy | Steven Knight | November 6, 2014 | 2.24 | |
| Tommy decides to settle all his affairs in case he meets an untimely death. He also meets with Alfie Solomons regarding business contracts. Alfie gets Arthur out of prison. Derby Day has arrived. Polly tries to pay off Michael to get him to leave. Tommy collects the Peaky Blinders and gives them their mission at the races. Without firing a shot, they are to collect and burn the licences of Derby Sabini's bookies and steal the bets. Tommy runs into Grace who informs him she's pregnant. Tommy tells her after the race, they will talk. Tommy completes his mission for Major Campbell, but at Lizzie's expense. Major Campbell's men from Northern Ireland, members of the Ulster Volunteers, kidnap Tommy and take him to an empty field while Aunt Polly meets with Major Campbell and shoots him. Tommy is let go with a message from Winston Churchill promising future contact. Michael decides he wants in on the family business. | |||||||
Series 3 (2016)
| No. overall | No. in series | Episode | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | UK viewers (millions) [1][lower-alpha 3] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | 1 | Episode 1 | Tim Mielants | Steven Knight | May 5, 2016 | 3.46 | |
| Two years later, in 1924, Tommy Shelby and Grace Burgess get married. The Shelby family and their kin have been invited, as well as Grace's family. Composed of cavalrymen, Irish members of the British Army, Grace's family dismays the Shelby family, due to the cavalry's late arrival on the battlefield during the war. The Peaky Blinders have a meeting in the kitchen, where Tommy, in a state of stress, orders the men to be on their best behaviour. Meanwhile, a refugee from Russia, named Anton Kaledin, makes contact with the Peaky Blinders, offering the code "Constantine" as confirmation for the money-exchange meeting with the young Duchess Tatiana Petrovna (Gaite Jansen). Tommy informs her that Kaledin provided the wrong code name, meaning the man must be killed. Arthur confides in Tommy, not wanting to do the job they must carry out, but Tommy tells him they have no choice, or else Tommy will hang. In the end, Arthur kills the impostor. | |||||||
| 14 | 2 | Episode 2 | Tim Mielants | Steven Knight | May 12, 2016 | 2.93 | |
| Tommy inspects armoured vehicles for a business deal with Father Hughes. He meets with Mr. Romanov, who pays him for murdering Kaledin with a sapphire. Vicente Changretta meets with Arthur and John to demand an explanation for his son Angel's restaurant burning down. John threatens Vicente and later beats Angel when Vicente publicly vows to murder him. During a Shelby family meeting, Tommy sides with John. Later, he is taken by Scotland Yard to a prison cell, where he is greeted by Father Hughes. Hughes threatens to kill Charlie if Tommy visits Ada again, due to her communist connections and remarks that he has easy access to Tommy's family. Tommy later finds a card under his son's pillow, which reads "Charles Shelby - R.I.P.". Grace wears the sapphire, which Tommy gave her, to the Shelby Charity Foundation dinner. Father Hughes and Patrick Jarvis inform Tommy that the Russians want to inspect the vehicles. Tatiana tells Tommy that the sapphire Grace is wearing was cursed by a gypsy. Tommy attempts convincing Grace to take off the necklace when a man shouts "For Angel!" and shoots Grace in the upper chest. Arthur, John and Finn beat the man to death as Tommy shouts for an ambulance. | |||||||
| 15 | 3 | Episode 3 | Tim Mielants | Steven Knight | May 19, 2016 | 2.70 | |
| Following Grace's funeral, Tommy meets with Polly and Michael to give them a list of things to do for their "legitimate" business. Afterwards, he orders Arthur and John to retrieve Vicente Changretta alive and shoot Changretta's wife, but they are reluctant to murder her. During a family meeting, the Shelbys realise that Tommy has left, leaving a note that he will be gone a few days. Tommy travels to Wales with the sapphire necklace, where he confers with a gypsy, whom he asks whether it is cursed. He returns home with some sense of normality having left the necklace with the woman. Arthur and John have procured Changretta, who Tommy threatens to torture, but Arthur shoots him in the head as an act of mercy. Following her help in finding the Soviet informant in the Economic League, Tommy invites Ada to head the family's future office in America. He then interrupts a meal hosted by the Grand Duchess Izabella Petrovna to secretly alert her to the information he has acquired. Tatiana sees Tommy to his car; he tells her that Hughes is betraying them to the Soviets and offers to kill him for free. | |||||||
| 16 | 4 | Episode 4 | Tim Mielants | Steven Knight | May 26, 2016 | 2.67 | |
| Easter 1924. The Shelbys receive news that their father has died and Tommy announces the plan to his brothers: they will have been hired to provide the Russians with weapons for a rebellion stolen from a train and will, in turn, be paid in jewels but, believing the Russians will betray him, Tommy plans to break into their vault. Linda tells Arthur she is pregnant and wants him out of the family business, which he agrees to do after the job with the Russians is over. His vagueness irritates Linda who demands a bigger cut for Arthur so they can move to America together. Polly goes to church while drunk and during confession she inadvertedly reveals Tommy's plan to assassinate Father Hughes to the priest, who tells Father Hughes about it. Knowing he is the target, Hughes foils Tommy's attempt on his life and watches him being seriously injured by his minders. He humiliates Tommy by threatening to kidnap Charlie, and makes Tommy apologise for wrongly accusing him in front of Tatiana and her family at the Ritz. Tommy later meets with a representative from the Soviet embassy and tells him Father Hughes is double-crossing the Soviets. He then collapses from his serious cranial injury. | |||||||
| 17 | 5 | Episode 5 | Tim Mielants | Steven Knight | June 2, 2016 | 2.65 | |
| Three months later, Tommy has recovered and the planned massive heist involving the Russians is drawing near. Tommy enlists the Peaky Blinders' old antagonist Alfie Solomons to appraise the Russian's jewels, ruining their plan to give Tommy fakes. The Peaky Blinders begin to tunnel underneath their mansion. Tommy makes a deal with the Soviets to ensure the guns on the train will be useless, negating the need to blow up the train and sabotaging the plan to plant evidence at the scene of the explosion incriminating the USSR, thus causing an international incident which would lead to Britain cutting off diplomatic relations with Russia. Ada officially joins the Shelby company when she is offered a place in their new Boston office. After previously revealing that he was abused by Hughes, Michael reveals that he too, wishes to kill the priest but Polly tells Tommy that she will bring the business to its knees should her son be the murderer. Polly finally views her portrait, after which Ruben and she take their relationship to the next level. | |||||||
| 18 | 6 | Episode 6 | Tim Mielants | Steven Knight | June 9, 2016 | 2.71 | |
| Tommy's son, Charlie, is kidnapped. Father Hughes reveals to Tommy that he knows about his subterfuge. He demands the jewels as payment and for Tommy himself to blow up the train, which must kill six people, in exchange for the safe return of his son. Tommy agrees unconditionally. After some investigation he discovers that Alfie Solomons divulged the plans to Father Hughes. During a confrontation, Michael kills Alfie's associate, but Michael talks Tommy out of killing Alfie. Tommy figures out where Charlie is being held and sends Michael to retrieve him and kill Father Hughes. At the same time Arthur and John set off to carry out the train bombing in case Michael cannot rescue Charlie in time. Even though Michael is successful, word does not reach the Shelbys in time, and the train is blown up. Meanwhile, Tommy frantically completes the tunnel and blasts into the Russian's vault, stealing several jewels and a valuable Fabergé egg. With his son safe, he meets with Grand Duchess Tatiana, who has been in on the jewel heist the whole time, and plans on taking her share to Vienna. Tommy returns home to distribute the remaining loot to his accomplices, but at the end of the meeting announces that the police are at the residence to arrest everyone. The rest of the Peaky Blinders and Shelby family are taken away in handcuffs. | |||||||
Series 4 (2017)
| No. overall | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | UK viewers (millions) [1][lower-alpha 4] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 | 1 | "The Noose" | David Caffrey | Steven Knight | November 15, 2017 | 4.12 | |
| As Arthur, John, Michael and Polly prepare to hang for their crimes, Tommy's reprieve comes just in time to save their lives. A year later, the Shelby family is scattered and estranged from one another. Ada returns from Boston for Christmas and visits each of them: John and Esme continue their relationship of sex and arguments, Arthur remains stifled by Linda's watchful eye, Michael uses cocaine to stay on top of the business, and Polly has fallen into an alcohol-fuelled mania, taking prescribed tablets to quell her visions of spirits. Tommy advises Michael to dispose of Polly's medication and help her through her mental illness without them. Each of the Shelbys receives a letter from Luca Changretta, a black hand in New York City's Sicilian Mafia, marking him or her for death in retribution for the murder of Angel and Vincente. Tommy and Ada attempt to convince the others to meet on Boxing Day, believing that they will be safer if they come back together. However, when Tommy discovers and kills a mafia agent among his staff, he realises the assassination attempts are due to take place on Christmas Day and gets word to the rest of the family. Michael goes to collect John and Esme, with whom Tommy could not get in contact. A cart pulls up, and John and Michael are riddled by a hail of bullets. | |||||||
| 20 | 2 | "Heathens" | David Caffrey | Steven Knight | November 22, 2017 | 3.86 | |
| Michael survives his injuries but John is killed. In the wake of his death, Tommy and the rest of the Shelby family agree to put their differences aside while they deal with the mafia threat. Tommy suggests contacting Aberama Gold, a killer-for-hire, something Polly is strongly against. Disobeying her orders, Tommy uses John's funeral to draw Gold out so that they can make a tentative deal. Enraged, Polly attempts to get Michael to flee with her to Australia but he refuses until she helps the family through their current predicament, something she reluctantly agrees to do. Linda discovers that Ada is under investigation by the government because of her marriage to a communist but doesn't pass the message on. Gold agrees to fight for the Shelbys if they take on his son, Bonnie. After seeing him knock out a man much larger than he, Tommy and Arthur induct him into the Peaky Blinders. Jessie rallies Tommy's workforce and convinces the entire factory to strike. Changretta visits Tommy and sets several bullets on the table, stating that each is for a member of the Shelby family. He plans to keep Tommy alive until the rest are dead but insists that their vendetta be an honourable one, with Tommy agreeing not to involve the police or the death of children or civilians. | |||||||
| 21 | 3 | "Blackbird" | David Caffrey | Steven Knight | November 29, 2017 | 3.96 | |
| The Italians launch another attack on the Peaky Blinders. Tommy realises that the Shelbys need to evolve if they are to survive, but some of the family are reluctant to part with tradition. As the strike takes hold at the Lanchester factory, Tommy pays a personal visit to Jessie Eden, but he is outmanoeuvred when she reveals something she knows about his past. Changretta plots to continue the vendetta in the most devastating way possible. As well as identifying an enemy of the Shelby family who could help him, Luca makes direct contact with someone at the heart of the Peaky Blinders organisation. | |||||||
| 22 | 4 | "Dangerous" | David Caffrey | Steven Knight | December 6, 2017 | 3.87 | |
| The Peaky Blinders are lured by the Italians into a cat-and-mouse chase on the streets of Birmingham, where it becomes clear that the Italians are outmatched. Trapped in Small Heath, Tommy tries to console himself with a visit from an old flame but it soon becomes clear that he can't always get what he wants. As his factory lies idle, Tommy confronts the possibility that the Communists might win and he will be deemed a traitor to his class. Meanwhile, Changretta prepares to spring another trap. | |||||||
| 23 | 5 | "The Duel" | David Caffrey | Steven Knight | December 13, 2017 | 4.06 | |
| Thomas Shelby has figured out Polly and Michael have betrayed him but goes to the meeting Polly has set for him and finds himself engaged in bloody battle with Luca Changretta and his gang. Thomas has prepared for the battle ahead of time and manages to single-handedly kill three of Luca's gang members before coming face to face with Luca, however, the police arrive and break up the fight. The family gather to find out what happened, Tommy explains what happened, it appears he had been in on it with Polly, he does not tell the family of Michael's betrayal. Lizzie Stark has even greater news to break. Polly Shelby shares a rather magical woodland scene with Aberama Gold. Meanwhile, an army colonel has questions for Ada Shelby about her past as a communist, and Jessie Eden confirms just how far she is prepared to go in pursuit of her cause. And sensing an opportunity to capitalize on his situation, Luca Changretta makes his way to London to present a plan to Alfie Solomons. | |||||||
| 24 | 6 | "The Company" | David Caffrey | Steven Knight | December 20, 2017 | 4.44 | |
| As the stage is set for the boxing match between Bonnie Gold and Goliath, Tommy gets a visit from Alfie. The Shelby girls meet to discuss Lizzie's pregnancy. Tommy watches the match ringside with Arthur who is suspicious of Goliath's seconds. When one of the seconds leaves the arena, Arthur follows and attacks him, and appears to be mortally wounded in the fight that ensues. At Arthur's funeral, the widow Changretta approaches with a white flag. Later at the family home, she reveals the vendetta will be over if Tommy signs over all his assets to Luca Changretta. Luca and his men meet with the remaining Shelbys in Tommy's basement distillery for Tommy to sign over his possessions. Tommy reveals to Luca that he has sent Michael to America to negotiate with other American mafiosi and turn Luca's men against him. Realizing he has been outmanoeuvred, Luca attacks Tommy, and a fight ensues. As Tommy is getting the upper hand, Arthur enters the distillery and shoots Luca. It is revealed that Tommy had Arthur fake his death to lure Luca into the trap. The Shelbys celebrate the end of the vendetta at Tommy's countryside estate, and it is announced that Tommy will take a holiday from the business. Tommy confronts Alfie for his betrayal, who reveals he did so knowing Tommy would track him down and kill him, and that he has cancer. Tommy then shoots Alfie and proceeds to take his holiday. However, as the boredom from fishing and golf sets in, Tommy's post-traumatic stress comes back, and he returns to Small Heath. Tommy returns to Shelby Company, Ltd., and contacts Jessie to let her know he wants to help her and thus acquires the name of her Communist party contacts. He takes this information to the Crown to secure an endorsement for his campaign for Member of Parliament, an election which Tommy wins. | |||||||
Series 5 (2019)
| No. overall | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | UK viewers (millions) [2][lower-alpha 5] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25 | 1 | "Black Tuesday" | Anthony Byrne | Steven Knight | August 25, 2019 | 7.41 | |
| The episode begins on 29 October 1929. Tommy goes up to a phone booth on Lickey Hills where on the phone Arthur reads a letter from "Angels of Retribution" which states that they have never even heard of Peaky Blinders and therefore are not scared of their threats. Tommy sends Aberama and Isiah to send a message to them and tells Finn to stay out of it. But Finn with the desire to prove himself joins them and during a shootout gets shot in the arm. Meanwhile, Michael who runs the Shelby company in the United States gets a message that Wall Street has crashed and leaves for Birmingham with his lover Gina. Tommy gets the news from Arthur about the Stock Market crash and becomes furious after learning that Michael held on even after being instructed not to do so. Tommy calls for a board meeting where it is clear that Linda is infuriated by the fact that Tommy made Arthur the chairman of the company so that he could maintain a clean image and let others do his dirty work. Later the Shelbys have a family meeting at Garrison pub where Tommy reveals that Aberama and Isiah were sent to kill a pimp who was blackmailing a senior member of House of Lords. During the meeting, Polly tells the family that Ada is pregnant. At the House of Commons, Tommy meets Oswald Mosley and later threatens Lord Suckerby, the Lord who had commissioned Shelby to kill the pimp to protect his reputation, for paying the full contract amount. Mr. Levitt conducts an interview with Tommy and asks him questions about his past with a view to damaging his image as MP, but Tommy outmaneuvers him with personal and sensitive information he has on him. At the end of the episode, Mr. Levitt is killed by two members of the Peaky Blinders having been sent by Tommy. | |||||||
| 26 | 2 | "Black Cats" | Anthony Byrne | Steven Knight | August 26, 2019 | 7.22 | |
| Tommy wakes up and sees a scarecrow in his farmland dressed up as him. Confused and angry, he approaches the scarecrow where he finds a note and quickly discovers that he is standing in the midst of landmines. Carefully he makes his way through the field, saving his son Charlie in the process and ragefully shooting the mines and scarecrow. At his mansion, Tommy gets a call from Captain Swing, who informs him that she has captured Michael from the men who supposedly want to kill Tommy and asks whether to spare him or kill him; as per Tommy's request, Michael walks free. At the Garrison, Arthur and Tommy warns Finn not to get involved with guns and Tommy tells Arthur that he doesn't sleep because he dreams that someone wants his crown and that it might be Michael. Polly and Arthur go to station to receive Michael where he introduces his new wife Gina Gray. Polly tells Michael that he won't be coming home until he tells the truth about what happened at the dock and gets a suite for him. Tommy and Ada meets with Mr. Mosley where Tommy tells Mr. Mosley that Ada (Tommy's political advisor) advised against meeting him as he seems to be moving in direction of fascism. At Garrison, Tommy tells Polly about his blackcat dream which implicates that there is a traitor close-by. Michael tells his side of story that he wanted a witness for his and Gina's wedding and he found a purser, whose friends at dock came on board and started talking to Michael about Tommy having a bullet in his name and that's when IRA caught him and told that men he was talking to were Billy Boys. Meanwhile in a forest, Billy Boys shoot Aberama in shoulder and kills his son Bonnie after crucifying him. Wounded Aberama goes to Tommy's house with Johnny Dogs whom he supposes to be the traitor as he and Lee boys only knew about their position. Enraged, Lizzie comes out with a gun and Tommy calms her down. | |||||||
| 27 | 3 | "Strategy" | Anthony Byrne | Steven Knight | September 1, 2019 | 7.18 | |
| Tommy and Polly head towards a catholic orphanage to shut down funding after receiving grim reports of violence against children that led to one committing suicide by hanging. Aberama Gold, while recovering at the hospital, is taken to a gypsy camp by Polly and told to lay low, but he disobeys orders and departs to Scotland to wage war against the Billy Boys in revenge for the death of Bonnie, prompting Tommy to send Arthur and Johnny Dogs to travel there and rescue Gold. Arthur, falling deeper in decay through alcohol and cocaine abuse, agrees to go to Scotland in exchange for the whereabouts of one of Linda's friends, whom he ends up beating, blinding and disfiguring when he fails to get Linda's whereabouts. Linda herself wishes to divorce from Arthur, but Lizzie discourages her. Lizzie confides to Tommy, allowing herself to be used by him in exchange for Tommy allowing Linda to heal his haunted mind. Michael continues to be given degrading orders as punishment for losing Tommy's fortune in the Wall Street Crash and his supposed alignment with Captain Swing, nearly reaching a breaking point. Despite Ada attempting to sway otherwise, Gina is adamant on departing with Michael back to New York so they can have their son, and tries to convince Polly to go along. Mosley, in a meeting with Tommy, Arthur and Michael, utilizes his leverage of withholding investigations of the murder of Mr. Levitt to coerce Tommy into joining the soon to be created British Union of Fascists. Tommy reluctantly agrees in order to infiltrate their organization and become an informant.[3] | |||||||
| 28 | 4 | "The Loop" | Anthony Byrne | Steven Knight | September 8, 2019 | 7.28 | |
| Tommy and Arthur meet with Chang, a Chinese Triad businessman who uses an assassin posing as a hooker to hold Finn at gunpoint, to discuss a lucrative opium shipment, whose value is promised to make up for the losses at the Wall Street Crash. Tommy meets with Jimmy McCavern to form a truce, especially given their mutual connection to Oswald Mosley, and uses this to test the opium shipment. To keep the truce, Tommy forces Aberama Gold to withhold his quest for vengeance, offering a marriage to Polly in return. Oswald, in a meeting with Tommy, confides that he knows of Lizzie's past as a prostitute, and in response Tommy tells Oswald that he is aware of the latter's affairs with his sister-in-law and his wife's stepmother. Tommy, despite attempting to both hold his House of Commons standing and his agreement with Mosley, continues hallucinating about Grace, to the point of almost committing suicide, as he confesses to Ada, who in turn suggests he withdraw from opium himself. In an eventful private exhibition of Swan Lake in Tommy's estate, which Mosley attends, Gold proposes to Polly, who accepts; Michael tells Gina that he will be taking on the Shelby's opium business, and lured by the amount of money they'll earn, Gina accepts; Arthur is confronted by Linda, who attempts to shoot him in retaliation for Arthur disfiguring her friend but is shot by Polly. | |||||||
| 29 | 5 | "The Shock" | Anthony Byrne | Steven Knight | September 15, 2019 | 6.79 | |
| Tommy, Polly and Arthur tend to Linda's gunshot wound, and as she recovers, she abandons Arthur. Mosley uses the stage at the end of the Swan Lake to make an impassionate speech concerning the advent of fascist movement in Great Britain, which all the Shelbys witness, in particular his anti-semitist sentiment. Tommy attempts to deliver information and evidence to a hesitant Ben Younger, who informs him both the government, the Ministry of Defense and Section D are all in support of Mosley, as they believe him to be a bulwark against a possible communist insurgency. As he leaves with the evidence, Ben is killed by a bomb in his car which also kills a child playing football in the street. Tommy informs Ada of Ben's death, who in turn reveals Ben wasn't aware of Ada's pregnancy with his child. Arthur, Charlie, Curly, Aberama Gold and Isaiah head to meet Chang and load the opium within their boat, but are attacked on arrival by unknown assailants who became aware of Chang's deal with Tommy. Tommy meets with Barney, an old comrade from the Great War and helps him escape from the insane asylum he is locked in, in exchange for assassinating Mosley. | |||||||
| 30 | 6 | "Mr Jones" | Anthony Byrne | Steven Knight | September 22, 2019 | 7.30 | |
| Tommy is called at the House of Commons by Winston Churchill, who inquires Tommy on his affiliation with the fascist party, whom Tommy informs it's an infiltration. At the family meeting, Michael and Gina attempt to propose a total restructuring of Shelby's company, which Tommy rebukes and Michael declares open rebellion, being cast out of the Shelby family. Aunt Polly later resigns from the company. At the Garrison, Tommy and Arthur execute Mickey, the bartender, after it's discovered he was the one who informed on both Ben Younger's meeting with Tommy prior to his death, as well as Arthur's ambush at London. Tommy then travels to Margate to ask for help from Alfie Solomons, to stage a mutiny at Mosley's rally as a cover for the assassination. Finn accidentally spills the assassination plan to Billy Grade, who runs the fixed football racket, who makes a telephone call even though he receives a bribe for his silence. At the rally, Tommy saves Jessie from being arrested as the communists attempt a protest. The assassination plan backfires at the nick of time however, as Barney, who prepares to fire, is executed by an unknown person with a silencer pistol, and Aberama Gold is killed when he attempts to kill Jimmy McCavern. Mosley's rally is a success as Tommy breaks down in the aftermath. The following day, in the middle of the morning mist, his torment over last night's events and Grace's apparition drive Tommy over the edge, screaming as he keeps a pistol pointed to his head, intent on committing suicide. | |||||||
Ratings
Peaky Blinders : UK viewers per episode (millions)
Audience measurement performed by Broadcasters' Audience Research Board.
| Series | Episode number | Average | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | |||
| 1 | 3.05 | 2.45 | 2.20 | 2.31 | 2.03 | 2.24 | 2.38 | |
| 2 | 2.31 | 2.18 | 2.20 | 2.06 | 2.10 | 2.24 | 2.18 | |
| 3 | 3.46 | 2.93 | 2.70 | 2.67 | 2.65 | 2.71 | 2.85 | |
| 4 | 4.12 | 3.86 | 3.96 | 3.87 | 4.06 | 4.44 | 4.05 | |
| 5 | 7.41 | 7.22 | 7.18 | 7.28 | 6.79 | 7.30 | 7.20 | |
References
- "BARB Top 30s". Archived from the original on 1 September 2014. Retrieved 21 July 2014.
- "Four-screen dashboard". Broadcasters' Audience Research Board. Retrieved 2 September 2019.
- "Peaky Blinders (Strategy)". 2019-10-04. Retrieved 2020-01-22.
- 7-day ratings.
- 7-day ratings.
- 28-day ratings.
- 28-day ratings.
- 28-day ratings.
External links
- Peaky Blinders on BBC—The official website for the series in the United Kingdom.
- Peaky Blinders on Netflix—The official website for the series in the United States.
- Peaky Blinders at IMDb—A user-generated database of information related to the series.
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