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‘Peaky Blinders’ boss announces illegal boxing series with Stephen Graham
Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight is releasing a new series about illegal boxing in 1880s Victorian London starring Stephen Graham, called A Thousand Blows.The show is due to be released on Disney+, and will star Graham as Sugar Goodson, a London boxer. The actor will also executive produce, alongside Knight who also wrote and created the show.A synopsis for A Thousand Blows says the show “follows Hezekiah and Alec, two best friends from Jamaica who find themselves thrust into the vibrant and 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, 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, a seasoned and dangerous boxer played by Stephen Graham, and the two are soon locked into an intense rivalry that spills out way beyond the ring.”Knight, who was the executive producer and creator of Peaky Blinders, said: “I always love to delve into untold history, and this is a story that really deserves to be told.”Graham starred in the final season of Peaky Blinders, and praised Matriarch Productions for joining up on the release of A Thousand Blows.He added in a statement: “Aside from having the privilege of bringing the role of Sugar Goodson to life, I am also extremely proud that Matriarch is co-producing this show whilst helping to create opportunities for people in front of and behind the camera, instilling the ethos of providing training within production that otherwise would be difficult for some to pursue as a career.
