The blueeyed boy is back
As fans witness Cillian Murphy in all his gangster glory, a starry-eyed Celebrity Editor Shelley Spadoni recalls meeting him...
Iam, as most rightminded viewers are, pretty hooked on the final, sixth season of BBC’s Peaky Blinders, as well as a little heartbroken.
Firstly, the magnificent Helen McCrory, aka Aunt Polly, is no longer with us. Secondly, I can’t stop thinking, how can this be the final shot in the arm of the stylish Brummie gangster drama we’re going to get – bar a film version?
But mostly, every time I watch Thomas Shelby and his gang in all their peaky-capped glory, I am transported to that time – some years and several series ago, when I turned up for a one-to-one with the main man, Cillian Murphy
– aka Tommy Shelby, at a London press event.
A big fan of Cillian’s acting chops (almost, but not quite as much as those chiselled cheekbones), I felt fairly confident as I walked into a small room in London’s Southbank Centre, and sat down opposite the unassuming Cork-born actor.
But then something strange happened. As I looked into those piercing blue eyes IRL (in real life), my Irish gift of the gab… left the building. I forgot my questions. Those eyes, you see – if it’s not glaringly obvious on-screen – are Cillian’s most distinguished feature. They are bright blue, and tongue-tying.
This suddenly scarlet showbiz reporter could not remember what she wanted to ask vis-à-vis the latest Peaky plot twist. My powers of small talk had entirely left me. I had just never seen a pair of eyes so vast, so blue – like the Irish sea. Then he spoke, shyly, with that Irish lilt that would make you weak at the knees, without diverting his gaze (‘Hi Shelley, how’s it goin’...?’) and all those prepared questions remained lost in the ether...
I just sat staring. Cillian Murphy’s eyes
– a little like ‘Connell’s chain’ in hit Dublin drama Normal People – are arguably more famous than he is.
They’ve inspired entire websites, Facebook fan pages and amateur YouTube montages, with discussions as to exactly what shade of blue they are (‘The colour of the sea on a bright Summer’s day?’ Or, ‘The bluest blue of all the very blue blues?’).
Eventually. I mumbled through a few show-related questions during our brief but blinding encounter. Perhaps I even managed to ask him about whether he misses ‘home’. But the whole episode is still a daze (though I do remember him looking vaguely amused at the whole carry-on).
In hindsight, all I will say is, no man has ever looked at me since quite like Cillian did that day. I wonder: Does it get any easier when you’re on set with the man every day?!
‘I had never seen eyes so vast, so blue, like the Irish sea’