Cillian Murphy remembers ‘proud Brummie and Peaky Blinder’ Benjamin Zephaniah

Murphy paid tribute to the late poet as ‘a truly gifted and beautiful human being’

Cillian Murphy has paid tribute to his Peaky Blinders co-star Benjamin Zephaniah, who has died at 65.

The pair appeared together in the BBC period crime drama, with Murphy playing protagonist Tommy Shelby and Zephaniah as Jeremiah “Jimmy” Jesus, a Jamaican-born street preacher and friend of Shelby’s.

“Benjamin was a truly gifted and beautiful human being – a generational poet, writer, musician and activist. A proud Brummie and a Peaky Blinder,” said Murphy in a statement, as reported by Deadline. “I’m so saddened by this news. RIP.”

The Peaky Blinders Instagram account also posted a statement saying: “We are so shocked and devastated at the news of the death of our friend Benjamin Zephaniah.

“He was much a much-loved, instrumental and influential part of the Peaky Blinders family from the very start, as well to the creative community at large.”

Benjamin Zephaniah and Cillian Murphy in Peaky Blinders (IMDB)

The Birmingham-born dub poet, best known for collections such as Talking Turkeys, died on Thursday (7 December). He had been diagnosed with a brain tumour eight weeks ago, his family shared.

“It is with great sadness and regret that we announce the death of our beloved Husband, Son, and Brother in the early hours of this morning,” a statement posted on his social media channels read.

“Benjamin’s wife was by his side throughout and was with him when he passed. We shared him with the world and we know many will be shocked and saddened by this news. Benjamin was a true pioneer and innovator, he gave the world so much.”

“Through an amazing career, including a huge body of poems, literature, music, television, radio, Benjamin leaves us with a joyful and fantastic legacy.”

One of Britain’s most prolific literary voices, Zephaniah’s work dealt with themes of racism, poverty, and social injustice.

Dubbed the “people’s laureate”, Zephaniah declared it his life’s purpose to democratise access to the arts by “taking poetry everywhere” – including to the people who could not read.

Zephaniah famously turned down an OBE (Order of the British Empire) for his services to literature in 2003, stating that he was “proudly anti-empire”.

“Me? I thought, OBE me? Up yours, I thought. I get angry when I hear that word ‘empire’; it reminds me of slavery, it reminds of thousands of years of brutality, it reminds me of how my foremothers were raped and my forefathers brutalised,” he told The Guardian.

The Independent’s Helen Brown interviewed the poet and writer on many occasions before his death. Here, she writes about what made him so special, both to herself and her autistic son on whom his poetry had such a profound effect.