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Thomas Michael Shelby is a fictional character and the protagonist of the British period crime drama Peaky Blinders. He is played by Irish actor Cillian Murphy, who has won two Irish Film & Television Awards and two National Television Awards for his portrayal of Shelby. The character has received critical acclaim. Director Steven Knight cast Murphy for the role of Tommy Shelby. The character is introduced as a First World War veteran from a family with Romani ancestry, whose criminal enterprise is centred in Birmingham. The narrative begins in 1919, and largely revolves around Shelby's romance with Grace Burgess and his conflict with Inspector Campbell. As the series progresses, Shelby's relationship with mob boss Alfie Solomons is a key element in many of the storylines. Casting and background Cillian Murphy had expressed an interest in doing more television roles, "Those iconic American shows had been on and we watched them and everyone was kind of conscious of that. I think the BBC were conscious of that and so I was keen to read some good scripts and they [Peaky Blinders] were the first TV scripts I got sent". Murphy admitted that he was not aware of who the Peaky Blinders were when he was initially presented with the script. Jason Statham was initially preferred for the role by director Steven Knight, who explains "I met them both in LA to talk about the role and opted for Jason. [...] Cillian, when you meet him, isn't Tommy, obviously, but I was stupid enough not to understand that". Knight then opted to cast Murphy instead after receiving a text message from Murphy that read "Remember, I'm an actor". Although many characters in the series are based on real-life historical figures, most of the Peaky Blinders are entirely fictional and were created by Knight. Tommy Shelby is from a Romani family based in Birmingham. Murphy spent time with Romani people to prepare himself for the role. Shelby is a veteran of the First World War and suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of his experiences during the war; something that is a recurring theme throughout the series. Shelby sports an undercut hairstyle and this has led to a resurgence in its popularity. Fictional biography Early life Thomas Michael Shelby was born in Birmingham, England, around 1890 to an Irish Traveller and Romani family. He grew up in the Small Heath neighbourhood of Birmingham. Thomas was the second of 5 children of Arthur Shelby Sr and Mrs Shelby. He dated Greta Jurossi, a woman of Italian descent during his 20s, but she died of tuberculosis. His experiences as a sergeant major during the First World War have resulted in him suffering from PTSD and it is implied he returned from it as a changed man. Storylines Series 1 In 1919, Tommy leads the Peaky Blinders into appropriating a consignment of guns from the Birmingham Small Arms factory. Inspector Campbell (Sam Neill) is tasked by Winston Churchill (Andy Nyman) to find the guns and, unbeknownst to Tommy, his new barmaid Grace Burgess (Annabelle Wallis) is working undercover for Inspector Campbell. Tommy is involved with fixing horse races, which has potential for conflict with Billy Kimber (Charlie Creed-Miles), who runs the races. Inspector Campbell instructs Grace to get close to Tommy so that he can find the location of the guns. Grace attends the Cheltenham races as Tommy's date. Tommy saves Grace from harm after initially offering her to Kimber, as part of a deal for the Peaky Blinders to become the security at Kimber's establishment. Tommy obtains a betting licence for his business and hires Grace as his brother Arthur Shelby's (Paul Anderson) secretary at the Garrison, which the Peaky Blinders own. Tommy and Grace become romantically involved. Grace tells Inspector Campbell, if she gives him the location of the guns, he has to leave Tommy and his family alone. 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. Tommy gathers the Peaky Blinders and another family, the Lees, and they take on Kimber's men. This leads to a confrontation where Tommy shoots Kimber dead. Tommy meets Grace and she tells him she loves him and will go to London for a few days. Tommy meets with his aunt Polly Gray (Helen McCrory) and she informs him that Grace is the reason Inspector Campbell found the guns. The series ends with a gunshot as Inspector Campbell confronts Grace at the railway station. Series 2 Grace is revealed to have shot Inspector Campbell, but Inspector Campbell survives. Tommy, Arthur and their brother John Shelby (Joe Cole) decide to get familiar with the London scene and start a fight at Darby Sabini's (Noah Taylor) club. In retaliation, Sabini has his thugs kidnap and attempt to rape Tommy's sister Ada Thorne (Sophie Rundle), as well as beat Tommy up. Inspector Campbell intervenes before Sabini and his men can finish him off. Inspector Campbell has agreed with Churchill (Richard McCabe) that Tommy will be useful to them. Tommy discharges himself from hospital early and takes a barge down to London. Tommy meets with gang leader Alfie Solomons (Tom Hardy) there. Tommy has a hard time convincing Alfie that he should align with the Peaky Blinders against Sabini. Tommy and John meet with Billy Kitchen (Paul Bullion), 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. Tommy becomes romantically involved with horse trainer May Carleton (Charlotte Riley). Alfie and Sabini meet and form an alliance against the Peaky Blinders. Alfie deceives Arthur and has him sent to prison. Tommy finds his fledgling empire crumbling before him, as his power-base in London is obliterated. 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. Tommy attempts to end his romantic relationship with May, though he still wants her to continue training his horse. Alfie gets Arthur out of prison. Derby Day then arrives. 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 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. Inspector Campbell's men from Northern Ireland, members of the Ulster Volunteers, kidnap Tommy and take him to an empty field, while Polly meets with Inspector Campbell and shoots him. Tommy is let go with a message from Churchill promising future contact. Series 3 Two years later, in 1924, Tommy and Grace get married. Meanwhile, a refugee from Russia, named Anton Kaledin (Richard Brake), makes contact with the Peaky Blinders, offering the code "Constantine" as confirmation for t.... Discover the Bonnie Bley popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Bonnie Bley books.