Huge period drama starring Stephen Graham renewed for second series – before first has even aired
HUGE period drama starring Stephen Graham is renewed for a second series before the first season has even aired on our screens.
The Disney+ show, which starts this month, comes from Steven Knight, the writer behind acclaimed BBC thriller Peaky Blinders as well as current BBC hit SAS Rogue Heroes.
The epic new series – A Thousand Blows – is set in the perilous world of illegal boxing in 1880s Victorian London.
Now, ahead of the show’s debut this week, it’s been revealed that it’s been recommissioned for a second series.
In the 1800s Londoners had to contend with two very different criminal gangs — a group of East End boxers and another of West End shoplifters.
The Forty Elephants were a band of women who robbed, burgled and swindled their way around the capital’s poshest parts including top end shops like Selfridges.
Meanwhile at the other end of the city were the gangs who ran boxing fights which was the only alpha male entertainment of the day.
Coming between the factions were Jamaicans Hezekiah Moscow and his pal Alec Munroe, and both got sucked into the dangerous but lucrative underworld of bare-knuckle fighting.
Now, these incredible stories have been brought together in new drama A Thousand Blows, which features Line of Duty’s Stephen Graham and The Crown actress Erin Doherty.
The thrilling series follows Hezekiah (Malachi Kirby) and Alec – played by Francis Lovehall – two best friends from Jamaica who find themselves thrust into the violent melting pot of post-industrial revolution London’s East End.
Drawn into the criminal underbelly of the thriving boxing scene, Hezekiah meets Mary Carr (Erin Doherty), leader of The Forty Elephants – the notorious all-female London gang – as they battle for survival on the streets.
As Hezekiah sharpens his new skills, he comes up against Sugar Goodson (Stephen), a seasoned and dangerous boxer and the two are soon locked into an intense rivalry that spills out way beyond the ring.
This month we exclusively revealed that despite rave reviews and top ratings, the BBC cancelled Stephen’s other show Boiling Point.
The four-part series followed the 2021 film of the same name and picked up eight months after the movie’s cliffhanger ending that saw irate chef Andy Jones, played by Stephen, collapse with a heart attack.
A source told The Sun: “It’s not often a drama gets such love from viewers and critics but Boiling Point was such a rarity the team has been left disappointed that there’s no news on a second series.
“The fact is there’s still an appetite for more, it’s just making that happen.
Peaky Blinders series guide
Series One (2013)
The series started in 1919 just after the end of World War I. The ambitious Tommy Shelby (Cillian Murphy) runs the Peaky Blinders street gang. They attract attention from Royal Irish police detective chief inspector Major Chester Campbell (Sam Neil). He’s been sent by Winston Churchill (Andy Nyman) from Belfast. He has been given the task to crack down on the Irish Republicans and the Communist Party. It ended on “Black Star Day” at the Worcester Races as the gang tried to take over Billy Kimber’s betting pitches.
Series Two (2014)
The series begins in 1921 and culminates with a huge climax in May 1922 at the Epsom racecourse on Derby Day. The Peaky Blinders try to expand their criminal organisation in the “South and North” of the city. This is while they maintain their stronghold in their Birmingham ‘heartland’.
Series Three (2016)
In 1924, Tommy and the gang once again look to expand their operations, but this time they want to go international. Father John Hughes (Paddy Considine) is involved in an anti-communist organization, whilst Polly (Helen McCrory) enlists Ruben Oliver (Alexander Siddig) to paint her portrait.
Series Four (2017)
Christmas Eve 1925 is when the fourth series kicks off. The gang receives word that the leader New York Mafia, Luca Changretta (Adrien Brody), wants to avenge his father’s murder that was committed in series three. At the end of the instalment, Tommy becomes elected as a Member of Parliament in 1927 after the general strike of the previous year. This is after he used communist leader Jessie Eden for information.
Series Five (2019)
The hit series became so popular that it switched over to BBC One. It’s the morning after Black Tuesday and the Wall Street Crash of 1929, and the Great Depression looms large. Tommy faces new dangers as he is warned that there’s a traitor in his circle. However, his plan for fascist leader Sir Oswald Mosley (Sam Claflin) springs into action. Meanwhile, Ada Shelby (Sophie Rundle) embarks on a romance with Colonel Ben Younger (Kingsley Ben-Adir), who happens to be Tommy’s contact from the British Intelligence. She quickly falls pregnant with his baby before he is dramatically killed by a car bomb.
Series Six (2022)
The sixth and final series of the show starts in 1933, just as the US repeals the prohibition. Tommy is set with more danger as Mosley grows the British Union of Fascists after the Nazis seize power in Germany. However, events get complicated as he also has to deal with plots from both the Irish Mob and the Anti-Treaty IRA.
“Boiling Point is on the shelf, so to speak, but if the right story or idea comes along then there’s every chance it could be back on screens one day.”
The series aired in October 2023 and landed a perfect score on ratings site Rotten Tomatoes.
It followed Andy, as he tried to find his place in the world without running a restaurant, and Carly, played by Vinette Robinson, who took over the reins at Jones & Sons.
A Thousand Blows airs Friday 21 February on Disney+.