How Stephen Graham was key to bringing Steven Knight’s new boxing drama to life

Once more, Steven Knight and Stephen Graham team up for “A Thousand Blows“, a gripping new boxing tale from Disney, which unfolds in the era of Victorian London.

As it happens, Graham played a significant role in the conception of the fresh television program. In an interview with Digital Spy, the creator of Peaky Blinders shared the inspiration behind the show’s creation.

Knight shared before the launch of “A Thousand Blows“, he mentioned that Stephen Graham approached him with the concept for the Hezekiah Moscow tale, a narrative about two friends who travel to London from Jamaica in the 1880s.

Later on, Hezekiah, who harbored dreams of becoming a lion tamer, instead took up boxing. Intrigued by this unusual transformation, I delved deeper into the true account of his life, discovering it to be incredibly captivating.

For quite some time, the creator had harbored a desire to narrate the tale of the Forty Elephants. These were an authentic group of female criminals who carried out burglaries and thefts in London during that period.

“And I just felt it was possible to bring those two true stories together and see what happened.”

Furthermore, Knight elaborated that the team constructed an 1880s London replica for the film’s backdrop. He likened it to stepping “inside a time capsule”.

Since it appeared capable of being lived in, the level of immersion truly made everything seem authentic, he noted.

The principal actors in “A Thousand Blows” are Graham as Sugar Goodson, the East End boxing icon; Malachi Kirby portraying Hezekiah Moscow; and Erin Doherty as Mary Carr, a member of the Forty Elephants gang.

Daniel Mays, who has appeared in “Moonflower Murders” and “Code 404,” as well as Hannah Walters known for roles in “Boiling Point” and “Whitechapel,” are featured in the show. The production company Matriarch Productions, founded by Stephen Graham and Hannah Walters, had a significant part in the series’ creation.

On February 21, 2025, “A Thousand Blows” is set to premiere on Disney Plus. Already, a second season of this series has been greenlit.

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2025-02-21 12:48

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