Peaky Blinders Had A Super Fan In David Bowie

Legendary pop star David Bowie was a man of eclectic pop culture tastes. The artist formerly known as Ziggy Stardust and The Thin White Duke was famous for his mysterious, otherworldly personas, but he wasn't actually all mystery all the time. Bowie passed away in 2016, but fans can still excavate lists of his personal favorites and influences online, like this one from Far Out Magazine that notes that he counted "Trainspotting," "Un Chien Andalou," and "Moon" (directed by his son, Duncan Jones) among his favorite movies.

Bowie may not have always been very public about his pop cultural interests, but we know about at least one television show that he loved prior to his passing: "Peaky Blinders." The BBC series turned Netflix original ended its TV run in 2022 (a film is still to come), but series creator Steven Knight revealed back in 2016 that Bowie was apparently a massive fan of the show. "We've had an amazing response from famous people for some reason," Knight told Radio Times (via The Independent), mentioning Bowie alongside other major celebrities like Steven Spielberg, Snoop Dogg, and Tom Cruise.

Bowie's love for "Peaky Blinders" isn't just an apocryphal story from after his death. According to Knight, he actually sent a sign of his adoration for the show directly to star Cillian Murphy. "He sent a photo of himself with razor blades in his cap to Cillian about a year ago," Knight shared in 2016, ahead of the show's third season. "I got in touch with his people who came back straight away and said he was a big, big fan." Knight even says a Sony representative visited him a week ahead of the release of Bowie's album "Blackstar," which was released just two days before the musician's death. As he put it, "It seems that his people were keen to establish that we could use it before he died."

The show ultimately incorporated Bowie's song "Lazarus" into its third season, underscoring a sequence in which Tommy Shelby (Murphy) slowly and painfully recovers from a skull fracture, numbing his pain with drugs in the process. The scene fits the lyrics and title of "Lazarus" perfectly, as Tommy is resurrected from a trip to death's door, sipping from a prescription bottle while Bowie sings "I'm so high, it makes my brain whirl." Murphy has also spoken about Bowie's wish to see one of his songs featured in the show, telling Spin 1038 in 2017:

"He was into the show and he wanted his music to be used in the show and it was very humbling, you know? For someone who grew up listening to David Bowie, that was a massive honor and privilege that he was interested in the show and keen to be involved. So we were all very humbled that he was."

It's heartbreaking to think that Bowie didn't get to see his music featured on the show he clearly loved, or get to see how "Peaky Blinders" wrapped up in its final season. Still, crossovers between the actor and the show's cast continue today. A cover of his song "Lady Grinning Soul" by musician Anna Calvi appeared in the show's fifth season, playing during a scene in which Arthur (Paul Anderson) severely beats a man ahead of a Quaker meeting.

Murphy, meanwhile, has gained his own unexpected inspiration from Bowie as his career has continued. The actor revealed that Christopher Nolan actually used Thin White Duke era Bowie as a costume reference point for "Oppenheimer" protagonist J. Robert Oppenheimer. "In our story, he puts on the hat and picks up the pipe and it's him kind of creating this persona, kind of self-mythologizing," Murphy noted. The actor noted that it was important to him to get Oppenheimer's silhouette right, complete with a "very fragile" look to him. "Weirdly, Chris sent me a couple of shots of David Bowie" Murphy shared. According to the actor, the reference points were of the musician "around the 'Young Americans' time, with these massive trousers, and he was so emaciated but so f***ing cool."

"Peaky Blinders" is set for a film continuation sometime in the future; let's hope there's room for another Bowie tune on the soundtrack.