Six Peaky Blinders actors who have died in real life
When Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man arrived on Netflix on 20 March 2026, it doubled as a reunion — Tommy, Ada, Charlie Strong, and Johnny Dogs all back on screen. But between the show's 2013 debut and the film's release, six actors from the series died, including two absolute pillars of the Shelby world.
Here's who they were, and what they brought to Small Heath.
Helen McCrory — Polly Gray
Helen McCrory played Aunt Polly, the true matriarch of the Shelby family, across five series. She died in April 2021, aged 52, after a private battle with breast cancer — before filming began on series 6.
Her husband, actor Damian Lewis, announced the news, saying she died "peacefully at home, surrounded by a wave of love from friends and family".
Rather than quietly write Polly out, Steven Knight folded her death into the story: series 6 reveals she was murdered in the fallout of the failed plot to kill Oswald Mosley, setting Michael and Tommy on a collision course.
Cillian Murphy told LADbible in 2026 that losing her was "a massive loss, a huge loss for everybody".
Beyond Peaky Blinders, McCrory was Narcissa Malfoy in the Harry Potter films and starred in Skyfall, Penny Dreadful, and Quiz.
Benjamin Zephaniah — Jeremiah Jesus
Benjamin Zephaniah appeared in all six series as Jeremiah "Jimmy" Jesus, the street preacher who served with Tommy in the First World War and stood by the Blinders to the end — he even helps Arthur avenge Polly in the series 6 finale shootout. Zephaniah died on 7 December 2023, aged 65, eight weeks after being diagnosed with a brain tumour.
He was far more than an actor: a celebrated poet, writer, and musician with 20 honorary doctorates, who famously turned down an OBE. Murphy paid tribute in a statement to Variety in 2023:
"A proud Brummie and a Peaky Blinder. I'm so saddened by this news."
The four you might have missed
- Karl Shiels — played Ryan, the IRA man who confronts Tommy in the Garrison and is killed by Grace in the same episode. The acclaimed Irish stage and Fair City actor died in July 2019, aged 47.
- Toby Kirkup — had a small role as a police officer. He died in August 2020, aged 48, of a cardiac arrest hours after being discharged from hospital.
- Tim Woodward — played Lord Suckerby, the MP Tommy blackmails in the series 5 opener. The Wings star, who also narrated CBeebies' Wide-Eye, died of cancer in November 2023, aged 70.
- Kenneth Colley — played Vicente Changretta, head of Birmingham's Italian crime family, who dies at Arthur's hands in series 3. Colley — also Admiral Piett in Star Wars and Jesus in Monty Python's Life of Brian — died in June 2025, aged 87, after contracting Covid-19 and developing pneumonia.
The film keeps faith with the departed. Polly's memory runs all the way through The Immortal Man — something Murphy has repeatedly credited Knight for getting right.