Aarcflick

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 ...