Peaky Blinders season 7: Hit Birmingham crime drama to make dramatic return to BBC One next year - will Cillian Murphy be in it?

BBC bosses want the episodes ready to air in 2026 to capitalise on a renewed wave of interest expected after the release of a Peaky Blinders feature film later this year. Series six saw the characters in the 1930s, while the upcoming film — titled The Immortal Man — is set during the Second World War.

The new series is likely to move the Birmingham gangsters into the Fifties — an era known for violent mobs of Teddy Boys and the rise of notorious East London ­villains the Kray twins. A TV insider said: “The sixth series of Peaky Blinders was supposed to be the last and the movie was meant to be the final farewell for the story.

“But show boss Steven Knight couldn’t resist coming back to the story — his most famous creation — and he’s been dropping hints he wanted to return to do more. But the fact that it’s been officially green-lit by the Beeb and wheels are in motion on pre- production will be a huge thrill to fans of the show, which was a huge hit for the BBC.”

Cast and crew are expected to start filming in September. The new series will air on BBC One in the UK but be distributed internationally by streaming giant Netflix — also behind the film.

Peaky Blinders ran from 2013 to 2022, with the action starting in 1919 and taking in the 1920s and 1930s. Cillian Murphy, who appears in the new film, could return as crime boss Thomas Shelby but as a “father figure” to younger gang members. The BBC has declined to comment.