Line of Duty favourite Martin Compston was almost cast in Peaky Blinders after his BBC success.
The beloved Birmingham drama burst onto our screens in 2013 and followed the lives of a fictional gang who took over the city in the aftermath of the First World War. The leading role of Tommy Shelby was quickly snapped up by Irish actor Cillian Murphy for all six series of the show.
But what fans may not know is that the actor nearly lost the role to Martin, 40, when the show was still in production. The TV star is best known for his role as Steve Arnott in the BBC police drama – a role where he puts on a London accent.
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However, the award-winning star struggled to get the Brummy accent down pat when he stepped into the audition room. Ahead of his reading, the star called in a few favours from his fellow Birmingham pals to help him practice for the role.
(Image: BBC/Caryn Mandabach Productions Ltd./Robert Viglasky)
Speaking on his The Restless Natives podcast, which he co-hosts with Gordon Smart, the actor explained what it was like in the audition room. He told listeners: ”I genuinely couldn’t just put on a Brummy accent now, I’m not good at accents.
“I actually went up for Peaky Blinders. I went for Tommy Shelby, thought I nailed the f***ing thing and Jed Mercurio who writes Line of Duty, he’s a Brummie so he recorded my lines for me.
“It was one of those moments where I was like, ‘I’ve got a shot’, and then my agent goes ‘Cillian Murphy’s going for it’. So, you just know you don’t ever follow up again ever.”
(Image: BBC/World Productions)
Murphy is set to reprise the role of Tommy in the upcoming film alongside fellow Irish hunk Barry Keoghan. Last month, it was reported that Dune star Rebecca Ferguson had also joined the star-studded cast which will land on Netflix next year.
Speaking to Deadline, Murphy gushed: “It seems like Tommy Shelby wasn’t finished with me. It is very gratifying to be re-collaborating with Steven Knight and Tom Harper on the film version of Peaky Blinders. This is one for the fans.”
The Oscar-winner has confirmed that this final film will conclude the franchise for good. However, show creator Stephen Knight has since revealed that he is open to the idea of a spin-off show in the future.
(Image: BBC)
Knight previously told Deadline that the movie would be set during World War II with production expected to begin later this year. The original BBC series also starred Tom Hardy, Paul Anderson and Helen McCrory.
Hardy played Alfie Solomons, the leader of a gang based in Camden Town. Speaking to Sky News in June, Hardy teased the return of his character in the forthcoming movie.
He told the outlet: “One hundred per cent, Alfie will definitely make an appearance, but I don’t know when. And I don’t even know if he will, that’s just me punting.”
Fans will have to stay tuned to find out if any other Hollywood stars will return for final instalment. For more of the latest showbiz news from Daily Star, make sure you sign up to one of our newsletters here.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
