Steven Knight, the prolific writer, director and producer known for Peaky Blinders and Eastern Promises, returns to period television with another riveting series. A Thousand Blows is a six-episode pugilistic drama set in grimy 1880s East London, where ruthless gangsters rule the grimy, impoverished streets against a backdrop of ugly Victorian classism, racism and sexism. The story follows three radically different protagonists as they try to get ahead in a literally cutthroat world. An ensemble cast of iconic characters intertwines as plans for a better life have devastating consequences.
Hezekiah Moscow (Malachi Kirby) and Alec Munroe (Francis Lovehall) are overwhelmed by the bustle of London when they step off their ship from Jamaica. The black men in straw hats and plantation clothes realise their status as second-class citizens as they search for cheap accommodation. They have little money but big dreams. Hezekiah has convinced Alec, his childhood best friend, to come along. They had nothing in Jamaica. Alec isn't sure they'll fare any better here, but he always has Hezekiah's back.
Stars: Malachi Kirby, Stephen Graham, Erin Doherty
The pair watch an astonishing spectacle as a woman screams. A crowd gathers around them, but Hezekiah notices something else going on. Other women are robbing distracted onlookers. The woman who is the center of attention suddenly stands up and runs off with her accomplices in tow. Mary Carr (Erin Doherty), the "queen" of the Forty Elephants all-female gang, has struck again with mastery.
Hezekiah and Alec follow her to the rundown Dolphin Inn. Its owner, Lao (Jason Tobin), is surprised that Hezekiah can speak Mandarin Chinese. His grandmother was Chinese, and many worked on the plantation in his country. Lao allows Hezekiah to stay in the basement, where he quickly opens a window for Alec to sneak in. Street posters of bare-knuckle boxing draw the wide-eyed Jamaicans to Henry “Sugar” Goodson’s (an incredible Stephen Graham) pub. They watch his brother, “Treacle” (James Nelson-Joyce), beat a man to a pulp as baying gamblers cheer. Can anyone survive a round for a few shillings? Mary, ever observant and shrewd, watches the black strangers take the bet.
It doesn’t take much to convince me to watch a gritty Victorian drama, but when that drama is based on a real, infamous all-female criminal gang, it shoots straight to the top of my list of movies to watch. And not only did A Thousand Blows not disappoint, it's one of the best TV series I've seen in a long time and I can safely predict that it will be the best show I watch in 2025.
A Thousand Blows delves into the dark side of boxing in Victorian London and follows Hezekiah and Alec (played by Malachi Kirby and Francis Lovehall), two best friends from Jamaica who find themselves thrust into the vibrant and violent melting pot of London's East End in the aftermath of the industrial revolution. Drawn into the crime-ridden world of the thriving boxing scene, Hezekiah meets Mary Carr (Erin Doherty), leader of The Forty Elephants, the notorious all-female gang, as they struggle to survive on the streets.
As Hezekiah hones his new skills, he faces off against Sugar Goodson (Stephen Graham), an experienced and dangerous boxer, and soon the two find themselves embroiled in an intense rivalry that extends far beyond the ring. The series was created by Peaky Blinders' Steven Knight and, in a similar vein to his previous shows, Knight based A Thousand Blows on real people. Sugar Goodson, Hezekiah Moscow and Mary Carr were real people and The Forty Elephants was a real group of criminals who operated in London for decades.
While the series has a lot of boxing in it, it also paints an immersive and vibrant picture of the social climate of London in the era of the post-industrial revolution and the lengths people went to in order to gain and maintain power. It's historical fiction at its finest and it's refreshing to see a period drama where black people weren't depicted as slaves or in chains - if anything, race is barely mentioned in the series. The main social divide it focuses on is that of class and money, between the working class of the East End and the aristocracy of the West End.
Stephen Graham and Malachi Kirby are brilliant in their roles, showing the power play and rage between the two very well. As the title of the show suggests, it's bloody, violent and brutal. But for me, it was The Forty Elephants that blew me away, especially Erin Doherty's portrayal of the group's leader, Mary. As I watched, I couldn't believe I'd never heard of The Forty Elephants.
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