Season 5 of Peaky Blinders will start with two episodes screened over two nights

A double-bill for Peaky Blinders fans.

In the immortal words of Tommy Sheby "no fighting, no fighting, no fucking fighting" because now is a glorious time for Peaky Blinders fans. Why? Well, the wait is nearly over because Steven Knight's superb drama returns on 25 August and to make things even better, fans of the show will not have to wait around until the second episode airs because that's going to be shown on Monday, 26 August. The BBC's official website has confirmed the listings and they've also provided a brief synopsis of the plot for each episode. Consider this to be a spoiler alert if you've no interest in knowing what the episodes are about. The season opener is set in 1929 and it's called Black Tuesday. In terms of the plot, we're told that "The Shelby family have dispersed: Michael is living at Shelby Company headquarters in Detroit, while Aunt Polly is holed up with a pilot in Monte Carlo. But the family are quickly brought back together when news of the Wall Street Crash hits and its implications for the family business become clear." It adds: "Meanwhile, Tommy’s political career is going from strength to strength; he gives a rousing speech in the House of Commons. It’s not long, however, before ghosts from Tommy’s past threaten to undermine his position." As for the second episode, titled Black Cats, it appears that the threat levels are going to escalate. "Tommy is at Arrow House when he receives a call from a mysterious new ally with potentially devastating information. At Westminster, in a dimly lit bar, he, Ada and Mosley meet to discuss business. Meanwhile, a rival gang, keen to send a message to Tommy, use brutal means to do so. At the Garrison pub, Arthur and Finn reveal their plans to expand the Peaky business empire. Later, a birthday celebration is interrupted by the unexpected arrival of someone close to Tommy with a message about a dangerous new enemy," we're told. During a recent interview with JOE, Steven Knight, writer/creator of Peaky Blinders said that Irish history and politics will be mentioned in the new season.

"Tommy’s an MP for Birmingham and he blurs the line between the respect a godfather would have in his home turf with that of an MP, so he’s doubly-enfranchised. He’s doubly-powerful and yet at the same time, in other series, he has always faced a nemesis and in this one he has some powerful enemies but his biggest enemy is himself. He’s struggling.

"Episode one begins with the crash and the Shelby Company have invested a lot of money in legitimate shares and stocks but that gets wiped out. When that happens, one begins to question how different is legitimate to illegitimate. They played casino of Wall Street and lost everything. They fall back on the illegitimate means of income."

With regards to the character of Tommy, both Knight and Cillian Murphy have said that this season will be far more psychologically challenging for the leader of the Peaky Blinders.

"He’s different and he’s the same. He certainly doesn’t step away from the grime and dirty side of being Tommy Shelby. If anything, because he’s having his own problems himself, he’s sort of becoming quite reckless, so he’s prepared to take risks and entertain danger. At the same time, he’s stepping into the House of commons and he’s a Labour m at the same time that Oswald Mosley was a Labour MP.

"So he rubs up against the person that would ultimately become the leader of the British Union of Facists. So, what I, setting up is that we’ve had the hedonistic ‘20s with the madness, cocaine, and booze. The Wall Street Crash happens and that’s sort of the beginning of the hangover that led through the 30s. What I’m planning on planting in this season - which I’ll pick up in series 6 and 7 - is amongst the many other things, that facism is afoot.  That’s what Tommy is embroiled in."

Having played the character for four seasons already, Murphy still maintains the excitement and passion for the role. In fact, he's relishing the chance to explore the new aspects of the character. “I think that this year feels to me like a little more about the inside of Tommy’s head. Last year was very much about external forces the guise of the Mafia and it was pretty conventional in terms of what he was dealing with. Of course, there was his own psyche and mental fragility to deal with,  that’s always apparent with Tommy, but in this season, it seems to me that it’s more explicit. It’s more about Tommy wrestling with his own head and that’s fantastic to play, obviously."