How Peaky Blinders has transformed West Midlands tourism

It’s the show that has become synonymous with flat caps, waistcoats and tweed suits, but 12 years on since Peaky Blinders first aired its influence continues to run through the West Midlands.

The hit BBC series, which ran for six series from 2013 to 2022, reached a global audience and helped transform Birmingham’s image, boosting tourism and birthing countless events, fan groups and street art.

The series follows the lives of Birmingham gangsters in the 20th Century, including Tommy Shelby, played by Cillian Murphy.

Off the back of a forthcoming Netflix film, it is is set to return to TV for two new seasons, the BBC recently announced, following the exploits of the gang’s new era in 1953.

Peaky Blinders, which was filmed across various locations in the UK, including parts of Merseyside, Yorkshire and Staffordshire, first aired on BBC Two in September 2013 and made the transition to BBC One for the fifth series in 2019.

A global phenomenon, the “peaky effect” has also inspired a number of tours, with an abundance of tourists flocking to visit local attractions and filming locations.

According to national tourism agency Visit Britain, 7 in 10 UK visitors have been to a film or TV location while on a leisure trip in the UK.

For many fans of the series, it’s as much about the community it has fostered, as it is about the story itself.

The West Midlands Peaky Blinder Group, which arranges monthly meet-ups and pub crawls for show enthusiasts, has grown to 44,000 members since being set up in 2018.

The group regularly shares photos and content related to the show and attends events dressed in the period attire.

Founder Derek Brennan, 67, from Dublin, was inspired to set-up the group after he was mistaken for a peaky blinder.

“I was dressed up as an old fashioned Irish man, which was a bit like a peaky blinder, and someone called me a peaky blinder and I was like – “What’s that?” he explained.

Mr Brennan, who won a Thomas Shelby lookalike competition last year, said people in Birmingham loved the series and were “very proud”.

“If you talk about Liverpool, you would talk about the Beatles wouldn’t you. You talk about Manchester, it would be Oasis,” he said.

“They say we’ve got the Peaky Blinders.”

Mr Brennan said they were like “one big happy family” and had gone on to meet other fan groups around the country.

“One of the biggest ones that we’ve done, we’ve gone down to Worcester and we’ve met the Worcester Peaky Blinders,” he said.

One of the group’s admins, Finlay Payne, from Birmingham, was inspired to get into the world of Peaky Blinders after taking part in performing arts in school.

The 21-year-old, who has appeared as an extra in the series, praised its creator.

“Steven Knight has created this masterpiece of a TV show,” he said.

“It’s amazing how we’re coming together as a community.”

Edward Gostick, 23, started running Peaky Blinders walking and drinking tours around Birmingham in April 2022, taking visitors to key parts of the city and local pubs.

His Slogging Gangs Walking Tour, which begins outside the West Midlands Police Museum, attracts about 30-60 people each week.

Mr Gostick, who dresses up as Edward Shelby while leading groups through the city, has been able to turn his bespoke tours into a full-time job, due to its popularity.

He told the BBC the walking tour had attracted fans from all over the world, including places as far as Kazakhstan and Uruguay.

“I’ve had over 60 different countries do the tour,” he said.

“I get a lot of Australians, I get Americans… I get loads of people from Holland, Europe in general, Ireland of course.”

Interestingly, about a quarter of visitors had never watched the drama, Mr Gostick said.

“My hope is that Peaky Blinders will do to Birmingham what say Robin Hood did to Nottingham, or what Shakespeare did to Stratford-upon-Avon,” he added.

“Birmingham is so much better than its reputation, I do think the Peaky Blinders has helped a lot.”

Some scenes from the series were filmed at the Black Country Living Museum, 12 miles away from Birmingham, including at its boat dock, which was Charlie Strong’s Yard.

The open-air museum, in Dudley, boasts reconstructed shops and houses, with creator Knight previously describing it as “the heart” of the programme.

David Middlemiss, deputy chief executive, said the series had put the museum “on the map” and drawing in many international tourists.

He said its popularity was only increasing year-on-year, with immersive Peaky Blinders nights at the museum attracting up to 2,500 people each time.

“We often have visitors who come to the museum as a direct result of seeing us on the show,” he said.

Mr Middlemiss said the museum was one part of the “wider ecosystem of hospitality”, alongside hotels and restaurants, that stood to benefit from the impact of Peaky Blinders.

“For us, because we’re Black Country… It’s a really important way into the region and the stories that people will find beyond Peaky Blinders when they get here,” he said.

“We’re delighted that people visit because of Peaky Blinders and then learn everything else.”