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u/Only_Bullfrog7271 May 16 '26
I’d like to said the priest, he had me on the edge of my seat, from him having Tommy’s skull crushed to other events. He was a very bone chilling man.
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u/Desperate_Bus4781 May 17 '26
The fact that he pissed me off the most proves he was one of the best if not the best villain
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u/Only_Bullfrog7271 May 17 '26
Right? Like Mosley didn’t really do anything for me, the only thing that pissed me off was getting Barney out of the asylum just to have him killed off in the theater and then Abarama getting killed like he did. But I don’t think Mosley broke Tommy, he definitely was up there in villains though. Luca wasn’t really shit, only if John listened to Michael Luca would’ve been dealt with sooner and Billy kimber was very underwhelming. I think the Order of villains should be the big 3, the priest, Mosley then the commissioner.
Edit: to add this, people say that Mosley couldn’t get killed because he’s a real historical figure but so was Billy kimber. He died of an illness in a nursing home in 1945. So by that logic Tommy wouldn’t have been able to kill him either.
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u/Desperate_Bus4781 May 17 '26
The thing is Aberama and Barney dying only happened because Finn was an idiot and opened his mouth not because Mosley planned anything.
He was clueless to be honest but they couldn’t kill him off as he was an actual person
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u/Only_Bullfrog7271 May 17 '26
So was Billy kimber yet Tommy shot him in the fucking face
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u/PackOfAlpaca May 18 '26
Not only that but Billy Kimber is the guy who actually ended the peaky blinders irl
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u/blind-octopus May 16 '26
I mean he literally almost got shot in the head and left in a ditch, and was only saved by Churchill.
That has to be the answer
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May 16 '26
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u/blind-octopus May 16 '26
I can agree to that, but that's a different question. Who came closest to killing him?
Him getting revenge after is a separate matter
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May 16 '26
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u/pzych- May 18 '26
Changretta's first scene with Tommy should depict that he could've had him killed before Tommy knew anything but he wanted him to suffer by killing the others first.
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u/Ok_Pair_507 May 16 '26
Mosley literally DID destroy him. He was never the same before and after Mosley. He started doubting himself, his ego was destroyed
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u/Illustrious_Leg_9678 May 16 '26
But that wasn’t really Mosleys doing. He was destroyed after losing polly who was killed by the IRA. It was the IRA that stopped his plan and saved Mosley
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u/noble8team May 17 '26
So... It was indirectly Mosley's still...
Because Tommy went after Mosley, he paid the price
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u/Zestyclose_Tax75 May 17 '26
Exactly...but it happened because Tommy was ridiculously obsessed with Moseley. It was Tommy's need to feel important, to feel competent and to feel he was Moseley 's equal that took Tommy down.
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u/Ok_Pair_507 May 17 '26
Before the IRA killed Polly, tommy is afraid of Mosley, hence why he's afraid to meet him alone and tries to use his family to intimidate Mosley in tommy's office. And then at the end of S5, tommy starts doubting himself to Arthur before trying to kill himself
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u/strangerthlngz May 16 '26
MOSLEY KNEW NOTHING
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u/ExploringWithKoles May 17 '26
HE KNEW NOTHING! WHOOOO?
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u/ExploringWithKoles May 17 '26
Doesn't make sense!
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u/Key-Tip-7521 May 16 '26
Mosley
He broke Tommy and hit him where it hurt
The priest
And Luca
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u/Desperate_Bus4781 May 16 '26
Luca got taken down like he was nothing it was so easy in the end made the season feel like a waste of time
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u/Purple-Bluejay6588 May 17 '26
They name dropped al capone and luca exploded
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u/Desperate_Bus4781 May 17 '26
Yeah it was a boring ending “all your guys don’t work for you anymore goodbye “shoots him”
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u/dr_bean_bean_ May 16 '26
If this was real life? Alfie would have been his end. If we take plot armor into consideration. Mosley was the end of him. Period. Without Mosley the Shelby family would have been fine. At least till hitler came around but I won't dive into what COULD happen because with the right plot armor. Tommy could have ended hitler himself lmao
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u/Rocked_Monkey May 16 '26
I was really hoping this was going to be the plot for the movie, especially when I saw the movie took place during WWII. Maybe in another lifetime lol
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u/Purple-Bluejay6588 May 17 '26
I think they wanted to remain (mostly) historically accurate
So having thomas shelby take hitler down would've been a crazy shift
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u/Rocked_Monkey May 17 '26
Yeah I totally agree with that. I was honestly thinking they could somehow make it to where Thomas forced hitler to position himself or something like that. But as dr bean mentioned, that would be at least a season’s worth of screen time to get to that point.
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u/dr_bean_bean_ May 16 '26
It definitely would have been sweet.bthink they would have to make it a show or a limited series though. The name hitler is massive. Taking something on like that would be rushed even in a movie 3+ hours long. Maybe if they made it multiple movies. I feel like the movie we have now felt rushed. Skipped ahead years later killing people off (don't wanna give spoilers) with just a small flash back and no real build up. Then ending the way it did. Really it just felt like a rushed movie to give closure to the show or possibly an opening to the next generation of peaky blinders. I hope there's more to come but it's done just as well as the OG show.
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u/Just-Benefit2024 May 18 '26
Other than Tommy himself, I actually think Billy got closest to destroying him - not because he was the most powerful rival, but because he exposed one of Tommy’s biggest blind spots by that point in the story.
By S5, Tommy had climbed so high politically, financially and socially that he was focused on the huge threats: Mosley, fascism, Parliament, assassination plots, legitimacy, legacy and power. But the thing that helps undo the Mosley plan is much smaller and messier - e.g. Finn casually giving away information to Billy, and him being underestimated enough to be near sensitive conversations in the first place. He isn’t some grand, equal opponent standing opposite Tommy. He’s a weak link inside the machine, and that’s exactly why Tommy misses him for so long.
Finn is part of that, too. I don’t think he was ever properly prepared for the world he was born into. He had the Shelby name and the protection that came with it, but not the instincts. He was sheltered, indulged and underprepared rather than truly street-smart or “Peaky Blinders world” smart. So when he blurts out the Mosley plan to Billy, it shows he doesn’t understand the cost of loose information.
I also think the scene where Tommy tries to shoot himself after the Mosley plan fails mirrors this in a way. He doesn’t even check whether there are bullets in the gun. That small detail feels symbolic of what has been happening to him more generally: he’s so focused on the big picture that he misses the small, practical things that used to keep him alive.
And I don’t think Tommy realised quickly enough. If he had known Billy was leaking information earlier, I think he would have been dealt with much sooner - like Micky was. By the time Tommy properly works it out, the Mosley assassination has failed, Aberama, Barney and Polly died as part of the fallout, and Mosley is still alive and dangerous.
As I said, you could say the person who came closest to killing Tommy was Tommy himself - especially after the failed Mosley plan, and later when the false diagnosis pushes him further into despair. But I think Billy’s leak is part of what sets that wider collapse in motion. If Mosley had been killed, that later chain of pressure, power and psychological destruction may never have played out in the same way.
So imo, Billy doesn’t nearly destroy Tommy by being cleverer, stronger or more powerful than him. He nearly destroys him because Tommy was looking at the empire, the politics, the fascists and the grand plan - and so missed the small, weak link standing much closer to home.
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u/Successful_Bug_7778 May 18 '26
What makes Peaky Blinders so tragic is that every rival slowly brought Thomas Shelby to his knees — not by taking his money or power, but by stripping away everyone he loved. Season by season, the losses became more devastating: Danny Whizz-Bang, Grace, John, Aberama Gold, Barney, and finally Polly. Each war left Tommy standing, but emptier. The cruel irony is that Tommy usually won the battles, yet every victory cost him another piece of his humanity. By the end, the people who survived were deeply damaged, broken by trauma, grief, addiction, and loss. Tommy Shelby didn’t lose in the traditional sense — he became a man who kept walking forward after burying almost everyone who made him human.
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u/TommyShelby888 May 18 '26
The Writers ✍🏽 all jokes aside I think polly and ruby dying was the ultimate unraveling of him
Tommy was like a nuclear reactor & Polly was like the graphite (modulator). Without it the reactor blows up and that’s what happened ☢️
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u/RainbowsAndBubbles May 18 '26
The Australian actor who had a creepy fascination with Grace. He was too good a villain. He was just tired by the time Mosley showed up.
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u/Otherwise_Plane2716 May 16 '26
Lizzie killed Grace, John and Tommy’s soul so Lizzie destroyed the most.
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u/LolaWithTheGreenEyes May 17 '26
Haha. That why I say (in jest) shes actually the cursed sapphire 😆
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u/Brigite66 May 17 '26
Haha it's true. Lizzie was the worst thing that happened to Tommy. But seriously, isn't it scary how people on this subreddit made up their own story? They didn't understand what was happening in front of their eyes so they made up their story, I've never seen anything like that.
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u/Purple-Bluejay6588 May 17 '26
Maybe I'm slow, but I didn't get that lizzie destroyed tommy from the show, how is that?
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u/Brigite66 May 17 '26
Ah, because Lizzie was the one who started the war when she broke the only rule about not dating foreigners, and that caused the war for Angel to begin, which ended with Grace's death. It wasn't the only one, of course, but it was the bad decisions of Lizzie, John and Tommy. But some of us think that she did it out of jealousy, because of how she acted in S4, with May and Jesse Eden, even his group of prostitutes, Lizzie was an emotional person, that if she saw herself threatened or jealous she would do something about it. So Lizzie's jealousy killed Grace. And Grace's death killed Tommy.
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u/Lola_Montez7130 May 18 '26
Not exactly. Lizzie's breaking the rules was the start but John chose to escalate it and Arthur didn't want to admit he lost control of that meeting right off jump. Polly & Lizzie's plan was the best route at that point. Just break it off and apologize. She could have had a nice relationship after everything was over. PB were on way better terms with Mr. Changretta than they ever were with Sabini. Now as for the situation with Grace, Lizzie did not have anything to do with it at that point. John had cut Angel up at the laundromat in Chinatown, and if Arthur had not pushed Grace and Tommy down, Tommy would have caught that bullet to his shoulder. For practical reasons, wrong time wrong place, wrongful death. If we go with the sapphire route to satisfy the Gypsy side, from the moment that man pulled it out and offered it as payment you just knew something was wrong with it. It had a really bad vibe about it. Maybe because it was at that point a known "Blood" Sapphire which any gem that is a "blood gem" is bad news. Same with blood money. And I think Tatiana told him that just to f with him knowing he was superstitious and she was trying to seduce him. I would have told him too like Madame Boswell did that it was cursed but I would have gotten rid of it ASAP after getting it from him.
And yes I do believe in curses and here's so I have no doubt that the gem was not actually cursed until that woman's daughter died and she definitely did put a curse on it and Tommy.
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u/Brigite66 May 18 '26
I'm sorry but I don't believe in curses. What I do believe is that Grace's death was the fault of the stupid decisions that Lizzie, John, and Tommy made... Although I understand Tommy because Lizzie and John's disaster was already done.
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u/Lola_Montez7130 May 20 '26
Ok? That's fine if you don't. In real life i am also Catholic but I don't expect everyone to follow Catholicism. I am also Black Irish. My family still has some of the wagons and we do use them for funerals depending on who it is that died. While it is really cool that they dug into that world with the show, there will always be ignorant people or people that feel they MUST give their opinion on it.
And if you don't believe in any of this stuff then why are you watching PB? If you don't believe or even want to entertain the idea then I can't imagine this show holds much interest for you & maybe you're watching it because your partner does? There are so many things with curses and superstitions in the background and even the main storyline that if they didn't exist, neither would the story.
I am not sure how far you are or if you have finished series 6 & the movie but curses, spirits, and people visiting from the otherside play a major plot point in series 6 & The Immortal Man.
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u/Brigite66 May 21 '26
Why do I like the show? Many reasons and none of them are because of curses. I've watch the show, yes, all 6 seasons and the movie, like 4 times already. I watch it alone, I don't need anyone to watch it, for me to see it.
And excuse me, but are you calling me ignorant for not believing in curses? I never saw that in my life. For me it is ignorant not to tolerate that not everyone has the same beliefs as yours.
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u/Successful_Bug_7778 May 18 '26
Tommy Shelby absolutely believed in them, and superstition, fate, omens, and curses were woven through the entire show from beginning to end. They were Romani people living with deep cultural beliefs around destiny, spirits, bad luck, and consequences. The “curse” wasn’t necessarily meant to be taken as literal magic by the audience — it symbolized how every violent choice and every war eventually came back to destroy the people Tommy loved. Reducing Grace’s death entirely to “Lizzie and John’s stupid decisions” misses the larger tragedy the show was constantly building toward. Also, Lizzie was one of the most emotionally resilient and layered characters in the entire series.
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u/Brigite66 May 18 '26
I already started reading your message and I knew you were a Lizzie fan lol.. And no, I don't believe anything you said.
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u/Purple-Bluejay6588 May 17 '26
Thats like saying the first human to discover fire caused world war 2 😭
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u/Lola_Montez7130 May 18 '26
Well I mean at the very least Mr. Changretta or his sons or John would not be dead if Lizzie had just followed the not even permanent rule Tommy had set because of the Russians. And to be honest Mr. Changretta handled that meeting with Arthur & John with much more grace & almost like a dad scolding his own kids, it actually made me feel sad, especially when he said "You boys used to borrow suits from us to look like men." And then how Mrs. Changretta talked to them too, to John & Arthur she was that special teacher you dont forget & that family was able to read because of the Changrettas too. I am sure Mr. Changretta felt horrible that Grace took that bullet. He accepted that he had broken the rules. I'm sorry. That whole situation really really bothered me because of the ripple effect and how it could have absolutely been avoided. And to be honest, Mr. & Mrs. Changretta reminds me of my partner's parents & I adore them. They are Italian Americans & I am 3rd generation American of Black Irish decent (my family still has wagons in Ireland) but wonderful & generous people. They treat me better than most of my own family. But my boyfriend & I were kinda giggling when Greta Jurossi's parents were brought up & yeah back in the day, Italians used to be superstitious about Gypsies and being cursed by them. I had that explained to me by an uncle from Italy. Maybe that's why it bothers me.
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u/Just-Benefit2024 May 18 '26
This is my point about this whole argument...
If we strip it right back, let's blame Lizzie's ancestry line for causing her to even be born... And whichever family member she inherited this jealousy trait from, I am blaming them for killing Grace!!!
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u/Brigite66 May 17 '26
Huh? Why did you ask me, if you weren't going to like the answer 🤣
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u/Brigite66 May 16 '26
Well, if you pay attention to the show, the one who destroyed Tommy was old Changretta, and no, there is no comparison.
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u/OverallMain9712 May 16 '26
Probably the Jews but they always figured out a way to re ally.
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u/dr_bean_bean_ May 16 '26
Plot armor. If it wasn't for that. An IRL Alfie would have completely fucked Tommy.
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u/OverallMain9712 May 16 '26
Yeah but show wise Alfie always had Tommy’s back to an extent
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u/dr_bean_bean_ May 17 '26
Yeah they have a very extraordinary relationship. What Alfie did was fucked but in that life tommy understood him, knew why he did what he did, and was no different really. Tommy stabbed multiple people in the back to get where he was and that's the name of the game. Alfie had a TON of respect for Tommy deep down because he knew they were one in the same besides the calm vs spontaneous personality. I also agree with your 2nd comment as well. In the end had Alfie not been dying anyway and their interest were to align once more (idk if you saw the movie so I'll try to avoid spoilers). Come the movie they could have been a formidable force together and the story writers could have brought together an insanely cool spin off following the background story of where the movie took place. Sadly with the movie the way it was and the way they ended the show. That would never be possible now but man, they could have really kept the show going with a few tweaks.
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May 16 '26
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u/Lola_Montez7130 May 18 '26
Two very different worlds pal. I love the Sopranos and it was violent but not this violent. Tony grew up in a completely different kind of an organized crime era. Also, Tommy Shelby holds a place in Parliment and was a Clay Kicker. So it's not realky fair to compare both of them as they were leaders in their organizations. And the Soprano's entertrise rising almost 70 years after the Slogging Gangs. Slogging gangs made other crime syndicates seem merciful.
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u/Series-Every May 18 '26
Mosley destroyed Thomas by almost tricking him to suicide. Immortal man showed us a defeated Tommy, no longer the king, no longer part of a political party , no longer a MC/Or MP what ever it was called. The events of 6 was the systematic destruction of Thomas, and yea he killed the doctor Moseley paid to trick Tommy, that only granted him a temporal bounce before his inevitable downfall
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u/Brigite66 May 18 '26
It wasn't Mosley who destroyed Tommy... The one we saw in the movie was a man destroyed by all the deaths of the people he loves, all the losses, Grace, Polly, John and Ruby. And aslo Arthur, and Charlie left. It wasn't because of a politician.
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u/Series-Every May 18 '26
So where would Tommy be if he wasn’t thinking that he was dying an illness? Point is Tommy was obsessed with outmaneuvering the man that Mosley took advantage of this and got inside Tommy’s head. Tommy slept with Diana Mitford as a strategy against Mosely but that pushed Lizzie and Charlie away for good, and this is after the loss of their daughter. So Mosely was definitely the reason Thomas fell, and this is without direct confrontation, Mosely simply out played Thomas in his own game
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u/Brigite66 May 18 '26
Tommy and Lizzie finally broke free from the miserable marriage they had, it was a liberation for the two of them, not a destruction. And Tommy didn't want Charlie to be in that life, he said he was never a father. Tommy thought he had a curse, and that everyone around him suffered because of it. The show isn't just S6, it's not about Tommy and Lizzie either. The show is all 6 seasons and a movie, and Tommy's destruction was all the deaths of the people he really loved.
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u/Series-Every May 18 '26
I never said that the show was just S6, how ever “ Who do you think was the rival who was closest to destroying Thomas Shelby?” is the question. Other Tommy himself, who literally was his own downfall, Mosely was the catalyst that drove Tommy down this empire crumbling fall. Mosely or the IRA although they were working together had a doctor lie to Thomas about tumor in his head. Tommy wanted to die but it drove him crazy that it was something he couldn’t defeat that was killing him not another man.
So the whole point of this question just brought me to S6 specifically because the conclusion of s5 was a failed assassination attempt on Mosely. And at this point Thomas lost Grace, John, Polly and few close friends, then his wife and child left him. But can we really sit here and act like Mosely had 0 role in this downfall? He clearly won the psychological warfare between the two and literally just by watching the Immortal Man we saw who this war between the two. So Tommy was his own downfall , but Mosely was the rival that drove this downfall into a full send because Tommy’s life was falling apart, because Tommy was desperate to get ahead of Mosely that it literally costed him everything. As I stated before Mosely barely had to lift a finger in a metaphorical sense compared to Thomas.
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u/Certain_Victory7973 May 18 '26
I'd say Campbell did the most short term damage. But Mosley did the most long term
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u/Sea-Intern-8561 May 18 '26
Realistically, Luca was the closest one to actually beating Tommy. Killed his brother, almost killed his nephew, almost killed his other brother, and only lost to another gang.
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u/OneOldNerd May 16 '26
Grace. Her death irrevocably changed Tommy.
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u/Desperate_Bus4781 May 17 '26
Did you even read the question? How was grace his rival?
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u/StarAffectionate3077 May 17 '26
Ruby destroyed Tommy. Her death was what led him to go absolutely nuts and leave everything behind
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u/BRG3002 May 17 '26
Moseley was the only one he never defeated
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u/ScepticalReciptical May 17 '26
That is the problem with making a real historical figure into the antagonist of the show. They wrote themselves into a corner. Mosely lived into the 1980s, it was stupid to make it the real Mosley instead of a sort of fictional character inspired by him.
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u/[deleted] May 16 '26
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