Stately home plays 'key role' in Peaky Blinders film

A stately home's "extraordinary authenticity" made it the ideal choice as producers searched for locations for the upcoming Peaky Blinders film.

Calke Abbey in Derbyshire will play a "key role" in the film, due to be released in March, with its condition portraying a period in the 20th Century when country houses faced rapid decline.

The Grade I listed building's peeling paintwork and layered interiors offered producers "an atmospheric backdrop that required almost no alteration", the National Trust, which owns the site, said.

The film is set in Birmingham in 1940 and sees the return of Cillian Murphy as Tommy Shelby in a new chapter written by Steven Knight and directed by Tom Harper.

Key scenes in the film were shot in the ground floor passageways, kitchen, schoolroom and night nursery, the trust added.

The stable yard and riding school were also transformed and went from storing agricultural tools to displaying vintage cars.

The National Trust said the building would become instantly recognisable as it played host to a scene of Murphy emerging from thick mist with a "slow and staggering stride".

Caroline Taylor, visitor operations manager, said: "Seeing the estate in all its glory on screen, from the atmospheric rooms to the historic stable yards, truly celebrates what makes Calke special.

"It's a privilege to share this unique house and landscape with the film, and we can't wait for audiences to see it brought to life."

More than 1,300 historic objects also had to be carefully packed, moved and reinstated by the house team in a process that took more than 950 hours.

Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man is in cinemas from 6 March and launches on Netflix on 20 March.

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