Steven Knight, ahead of the Peaky Blinders movie going into production, has been arguing about the stories that need to be told on screen.
Obviously we’re not allowed into such posh things, but taking place in London this week is the annual RTS convention. Looking up exactly what that is, RTS stands for Royal Television Society, and if I was being paid by the word, you having to read me doing basic research would have earned me a few pence.
The event has attracted an assortment of high profile television talent, and one of the names on stage has been Steven Knight. Knight, the creator of Peaky Blinders of course, has long been a champion of working classic stories, ideally not set in London. As a proud Midlander – just like me – he’s now set up his own film studios, Digbeth Loc, in the heart of Birmingham too. The Peaky Blinders film is crewing up there this very month.
Knight’s comments to the RTS event though are important though, in particular zeroing in on the stories that he feels are important to tell. To use his words, “if you get into a cab in London, I’m pretty sure that the story of the driver would be more interesting than the story of the passenger”.
More than that, though. “We need to write those stories, because they’re simply better stories. They are the stories of 70% of the country”.
Amen. At a point where television drama has focused on the very rich and the very wealthy, the gold is surely in the tales that are happening around us.
Knight also teased a bit more of the Peaky Blinders movie at the event, confirming that it’ll be set during World War II. Already, Barry Keoghan and Rebecca Ferguson have joined Cillian Murphy in the cast. More faces are due to be confirmed ahead of production formally beginning. You can read more on that, here. And we’ll keep you posted as we hear more…
