Peaky Blinders’ Natasha O’Keeffe speaks of ‘spiritual’ connection with late Helen McCrory
The untimely death of British actress Helen McCrory, left the nation shocked, after she lost her battle with cancer last April at the age of just 52. Fans, her loved ones and the cast of Peaky Blinders are all still grieving the terrible loss, with Natasha O’Keeffe revealing she sometimes found herself talking to her on-set of the latest series.
Helen, who played Aunt Polly in the hit BBC drama, won’t appear in the new season but creator Steven Knight, reassured fans they’ll see a tribute to the late actress.
Ahead of the premiere of the highly-anticipated instalment, the cast spoke about their grief.
Cillian Murphy, who plays Tommy Shelby, admitted the show “simply won’t be the same”.
And in a new interview with Radio Times, Natasha revealed her death “knocked us all back”.
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The actress, who plays Tommy’s second wife Lizzie Stark, said: “There were some moments of happiness and laughter on set, but it was a very sad and surreal time.
“It’s hard to get your head around the fact that if filming hadn’t been delayed by Covid, Helen would have been in the sixth series.
“Aunt Polly was meant to be part of that story.”
She went on to explain she feels like Helen remained on set in a “spiritual” way.
“The emotion of it all comes in tidal waves. It’s still hard to believe…”
It’s understood that the series is dedicated to Helen, with Knight branding her “fundamental to the whole production”.
He told the publication: “Helen was so brilliant. Losing her, on a personal level, was a tragedy.
“She was such a key part of this whole thing that losing her shook it to its foundations.
“And after it had been shaken like that, it’s almost like you’re faced with a lot of debris, and you have to try and put it all back together.”
He added: “But none of us ever thought about the work challenges, because they paled into insignificance next to the terrible personal tragedy.”
Cillian also told Variety earlier this month: “Her presence and her character’s presence are very much still felt in the series, and it is very much part of Tommy’s journey in the season.
“It’ll be different without her, you know. It simply won’t be the same. I’ve spoken about how phenomenal she was as an actress and as a person and it is an enormous loss to the whole acting community and not just for our show.
“My thoughts are always with Damian [Lewis, her husband] and her kids. I just hope that the show will live up to her memory and our memory of her.”
The full interview is available to read now in Radio Times.
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