One of the BBC stand out dramas of the last decade Peaky Blinders retains a significant public following.  It was created by Steven Knight and ran for six series. Since the show ended in April 2022 it has spawned a number of offshoots including a Rambert dance show to tour next year. The series, originally set in Birmingham, introduced a number of memorable characters and was based on the real gangs that came to prominence after the First World War. It is reported that a film is in the making of the next chapter of the Blinders story.

So we come to Peaky Blinders: The Rise, an immersive theatrical experience at Camden Garrison in the Old Stables Market, close to where the gangs controlled robbery, violence, racketeering, and illegal bookmaking, so you start with a real sense of location.  It is 1921, Tommy Shelby (Craig Hamilton) has most of the Birmingham underworld under control and it is time to expand. He has come to a deal with Jewish gangster and liquor dealer Alfie Solomons (Sam Blythe) in London.  To increase the family business Shelby has to have a family meeting and vote, this is where we come in, whisky export to a prohibition America via Canada is on the table with potentially huge profits.

Immersive experiences can sometimes be a bit hit and miss, including being overly long.  This production of approaching two and a half hours is just right.  Surprisingly, you do not need to know what happened in the TV show to enjoy Peaky Blinders – The Rise.  Before the show you will be given a questionnaire and allocated to a family and asked to wear the family’s colour.  On entrance you’re given some Bank of London notes and you are told by the door keeper that the cops are paid off and if asked who you are, you say the password that you are a baker.