The Peaky Blinders were a real historical street gang from Birmingham, England in the late 19th and early 20th century, and they also inspired the fictional Shelby family crime empire in the hit TV series Peaky Blinders. In pop culture today, most people use “Peaky Blinders” to mean Tommy Shelby’s gang from the series rather than the original youths in Birmingham’s backstreets.

Who the Peaky Blinders really were

  • The historical Peaky Blinders were a street gang active roughly from the 1880s to the 1920s in Birmingham, England.
  • They were mostly young working‑class men involved in robbery, racketeering, illegal bookmaking and control of local gambling.
  • Their name became a generic slang term in Birmingham for violent street gangs even after the original group faded.

Their trademark style

  • Members became known for sharp tailored jackets, waistcoats, overcoats, silk scarves, and flat caps, creating a distinctive dandyish look compared to other local gangs.
  • This fashion image strongly influenced the visual style of the modern TV series, from the caps to the long coats and boots.

The Peaky Blinders TV series

  • Peaky Blinders is a British historical crime drama that premiered in 2013 and ran for six seasons, ending in 2022.
  • It follows a fictionalised crime family of mixed Irish Traveller and Romani origin, the Shelbys, in post‑World War I Birmingham starting in 1919.

Main characters and gang

  • The gang in the show is led by Thomas “Tommy” Shelby, played by Cillian Murphy, who turns a small illegal bookmaking outfit into a wider criminal and political machine.
  • Key family members include Arthur Shelby, Polly Gray, Ada Shelby and John Shelby, who run the Peaky Blinders as a family business mixing loyalty, brutality and ambition.

What they do in the story

  • In the series, the Peaky Blinders start with illegal gambling, theft and extortion, then expand into race‑fixing, bootlegging, and later more legitimate‑looking businesses.
  • As their power grows, they clash with rival gangs, the police, politicians, and even foreign criminal organisations, with violence and betrayal at the core of the plot.

Historical vs. fictional Peaky Blinders

[9] [2][3] [9] [5][2] [9] [1][5] [9] [2][5] [9] [1][3]
Aspect Historical gang TV series gang
Time period Roughly 1880s–1920s in Birmingham.Starts in 1919 and moves through the 1920s.
Leadership No single famous leader widely known today.Led by Tommy Shelby and the Shelby family.
Main crimes Robbery, violence, racketeering, illegal bookmaking.Illegal betting, race‑fixing, smuggling, political corruption, plus legal fronts.
Style Sharp tailored clothes and flat caps.Highly stylised version of the same look, used as a visual signature.
Scale of power Local dominance then overtaken by larger gangs like the Birmingham Boys.Portrayed as one of the most powerful gangs in England, expanding nationally.

Latest buzz and forum chatter

  • Even after the final season, Peaky Blinders stays a trending topic, with ongoing discussions about a planned follow‑up film and spin‑off possibilities, keeping “who are the Peaky Blinders” an active search phrase.
  • Online forums and fan wikis continue to debate favourite seasons, characters and historical accuracy, blending real‑gang history with the show’s darker, stylised mythology.

In short, when people today ask “who are the Peaky Blinders,” they’re usually talking about Tommy Shelby’s fictional crime family, built on the bones of a very real Birmingham street gang.

TL;DR: The Peaky Blinders were originally a real Birmingham street gang around 1880–1920, but are now best known as the ruthless, sharply dressed Shelby family crime syndicate in the Peaky Blinders TV series.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.