Ditching the dockyards of post-war Birmingham for the no-less brutal East End of London in the 1880s, A Thousand Blows is the latest gripping piece from acclaimed screenwriter Steven Knight, creator of Peaky Blinders. This gritty drama features Malachi Kirby and Francis Lovehall as two friends from Jamaica, Hezekiah Moscow and Alec Munroe, who find themselves entangled in London’s bare-knuckle boxing scene and the notorious Forty Elephants, an all-female crime syndicate.

But the work’s beating force beneath a chiselled physique is Stephen Graham, as the ruthless Sugar Goodson, self-proclaimed emperor of East End boxing. Graham, already a surefire sign of quality thanks to recent roles in Boiling Point and Code 404, reunites with Knight for this hard-hitting, sweaty drama. Graham’s versatility, seen in everything from Line Of Duty to Matilda, and his championing of working-class writers with the co-creation of the Grass Routes writing competition to support socio-economically disadvantaged writers, has solidified his status (without fanfare) as a national treasure.

A Thousand Blows boasts a compelling cast, including new talents like Ziggy Heath and established actors such as Jason Tobin and The Crown’s Erin Doherty, who are already on the upward trajectory of emerging talent. Looking to duke it out among other major releases, this series is poised to add some heft to Disney’s belt, hoping to match stable heavyweights Shōgun or The Bear. Certainly, A Thousand Blows looks promising, a historically rich storytelling experience that satisfies viewers’ brutish appetites and, even better, gives us more from Doherty and Graham. 

A Thousand Blows starts on Disney+ on Friday 21 February.