Cillian Murphy felt 'strange and confused' filming Peaky Blinders without the late Helen McCrory

2 February 2022, 09:53 | Updated: 2 February 2022, 10:05

By Naomi Bartram

@naomibartram

Peaky Blinders star Cillian Murphy has opened up about filming without his late co-star Helen McCrory.

Cillian Murphy has opened up about filming the new series of Peaky Blinders without Helen McCrory.

Helen, who played matriarch Polly Gray in the BBC series, passed away last April at the age of 52 following a battle with cancer.

And after filming the final season of the crime drama, her former co-star Cillian has said things felt ‘strange and confusing’.

"We were just reeling throughout the whole thing,” the Tommy Shelby star told Esquire.

• Peaky Blinders crew share touching on set tribute to Helen McCrory following her death

“She was a dear, dear pal and she was the beating heart of that show, so it felt very strange being on set without her.”

Cillian went on to say that without COVID, there would have been ‘a whole other version of the show with Helen in it’.

He continued: "But she was so private and so brave and courageous. She was inspirational. People throw that word around, but she genuinely was.

"Her values, the way she dealt with her kids and Damian. She cares about everybody. She's really funny and really cool, and she had this real warmth. She really cared.

"It's just... I still can't believe she's not here. It doesn't make sense. I've never lost anyone like that - who was young and a friend. It was very confusing.

"But she was magnificent. She was an absolutely magnificent person."

The sixth and final series of Peaky Blinders is set to be released on BBC this month and will be available on Netflix six months later.

This comes after Helen's husband Damian Lewis shared the news of her passing last year, with a statement calling her ‘fearless’.

He wrote at the time: "I'm heartbroken to announce that after a heroic battle with cancer, the beautiful and mighty woman that is Helen McCrory has died peacefully at home, surrounded by a wave of love from friends and family.

"She died as she lived. Fearlessly. God we love her and know how lucky we are to have had her in our lives. She blazed so brightly. Go now, Little One, into the air, and thank you."

Helen and Damian married in 2007 and share two children together - Manon, 14, and Gulliver, 13.

The star had a long and successful career in acting and was also known for appearing in the Harry Potter movies and the 2012 James Bond film Skyfall.