Steven Knight

Birmingham mural announces air date for final series of Peaky Blinders

Street artist Akse was commissioned by the BBC to paint a mural in the home of the eponymous gang that announced the previously secret broadcast date of 27 February.

The 12.71m high artwork depicts the leader of the Peaky Blinders, Tommy Shelby, played by Cillian Murphy. It took seven days to complete and can now be seen in full on the side of a building overlooking the Old Crown pub in Digbeth.

The series, created by Steven Knight, first aired on BBC Two in 2013. It follows the lives and exploits of the Shelby and his gang in the aftermath of the First World War.

First-look and further casting revealed for Steven Knight’s SAS: Rogue Heroes

Alfie Allen, Connor Swindells and Jack O'Connell (credit: BBC)

Filmed on location in the UK and Morocco, the six-part series will tell a dramatised account of how the darkest days of World War Two lead to the formation of the SAS under extraordinary circumstances.

The series will star Connor Swindells (Sex Education), Jack O’Connell (The North Water), Alfie Allen (White House Farm), Sofia Boutella (Modern Love) and Dominic West (The Pursuit of Love). Tom Glynn-Carney (Dunkirk) will star as SAS founding member Mike Sadler.

Filming begins for sixth and final series of Peaky Blinders

It has also been confirmed that the series will be the drama’s last, although creator and writer, Steven Knight, has hinted at a spin-off: “While the TV series will be coming to an end, the story will continue in another form.”

The story of Tommy Shelby and his notorious family’s rise to power in post-First World War Birmingham has grown to become an international phenomenon since it first aired in 2013.

Our Friend in the Midlands: Kuljinder Khaila

Barring an unexpected – but probably unsurprising – large asteroid impact, the most tumultuous year in living memory is finally limping to its end. At this time of year, we would normally compile a review or two but who wants to relive 2020?

It seems the biblical equestrian quartet has been riding roughshod for months; countless losses and the unending upheaval of the pandemic; acts of violent racism; raging wildfires, floods and even a locust plague in East Africa. As a result, we’ve all changed this past year.

Steven Knight to adapt Great Expectations for BBC One

Steven Knight (Credit: BBC)

The six-part limited series is the second Dickens novel Knight has adapted, following A Christmas Carol last year.

Knight will once again be partnering up with producers Ridley Scott and Tom Hardy to bring the novel to life.

Great Expectations tells the coming-of-age story of orphan Pip, who dreams of being a gentleman and winning the heart of the beautiful but cold Estella.

Initially the story was released by Dickens as weekly chapters starting in December 1860, before it was published as a complete novel.

Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight discusses upcoming project A Christmas Carol in drama masterclass

Steven Knight (right) (Credit: Teresa Bogan)

The early December event – organised by BBC Birmingham in partnership with RTS Midlands – celebrated the writer’s latest project, a three-part adaptation of A Christmas Carol, a highlight of BBC One’s festive schedule.

The Dickens classic has been adapted countless times, which is why Knight said he undertook a detailed study of the original text in search of a fresh take on a familiar story.

Steven Knight on his childhood glimpse at the Peaky Blinders world to working with Brad Pitt

The screenwriter about to become a studio mogul; the boardgame inventor whose next drama will launch Apple’s foray into television; the Who Wants To Be a Millionaire? creator nominated for an Oscar – there are many ways to paraphrase the extraordinary career of Steven Knight. Let’s start, however, with the blacksmith’s son who launched a million haircuts.

Steven Knight to adapt SAS: Rogue Heroes

Steven Knight (Credit: BBC)

The six-part series of the same name will delve into the origins of the world’s most esteemed Special Forces unit, the Special Air Services.

Set during the darkest days of the Second World War, a maverick military group revolutionise a new form of warfare in the deserts of North Africa.

Operating as small squads of parachute trained soldiers, the troops deploy behind enemy lines for reconnaissance missions, to raid supply lines, attack reinforcement routes and sabotage enemy aircraft weaponry to help the war effort.