From the moment it debuted, Peaky Blinders has featured a revolving door of great characters and talented actors. For example, season 1 focused a lot on Freddie Thorne, only to reveal that he died in between the first two seasons. Even Grace, a hugely important character, was killed off just when she joined the Shelby family.
With things like that happening often, Peaky Blinders has been great at introducing new players, especially after the initial set of episodes. They include love interests, important family members, and vicious antagonists who have often helped make the show better.
May Fitz Carleton
May Carleton first appears in the show during season 2 when she meets Tommy Shelby at the horse auctions. A wealthy widow, May gets hired by Tommy to train his new racehorse, which he named Grace's Secret since he was still in love with Grace.
That didn't sway May, who didn't hide her desires for Tommy. She made for a good foil and romantic interest, but Tommy only truly wanted Grace at the time. They met up after Grace's death but it still wasn't right, though in another life, things could've been different for them.
Ben Younger
It's no secret that most of the characters on Peaky Blinders are far from good people. Even protagonist Tommy is known to do some heinous things. That being said, Ben Younger is one of the show's few characters who actually feels like a good person as far as the audience knows.
An army intelligence colonel, Younger is someone who is constantly fighting against fascist and socialist activities. When Ada is arrested and they first meet, he's the only one to show her any respect and not treat her as an object. They ultimately begin a relationship but Younger is unjustly killed before he can make more of an impact.
Linda Shelby
Linda Shelby will never be Peaky Blinders' most popular character. The wife of the violent and unstable Arthur Shelby, Linda being against what the family does would be understandable. The problem is that she goes along with it when it benefits her and when it doesn't, she acts as if she's better than the Shelbys.
Most of the time, Linda is barely there to help Arthur through his toughest times and instead spends her days driving a wedge in the family. She manipulates Arthur and when she sees Tommy do something similar, she chastises him for it. Linda is selfish and often unlikeable, but she brings a ton of drama and intrigue to the series.
Father John Hughes
The bad guys on Peaky Blinders are meant to be both ruthless and cunning. Father John Hughes fits that bill, but he's also despicable due to his history of child molestation. The priest proved to be one of the biggest threats to the Shelby Family, which is why having him around made for entertaining TV.
Viewers were dying to see him get his comeuppance. When it finally happened, having Michael (insinuated to be one of Hughes' victims as a child) deal the killing blow felt just right. Hughes was the perfect bad guy to make the Shelby Family seem good by comparison.
Aberama Gold
Maybe it's due to his fantastic work on Game of Thrones as Littlefinger, but audiences have a hard time trusting anyone played by Aidan Gillen. Thankfully, Aberama Gold has proven to be more loyal to the Shelby family than most expected.
Gold first joins up in season 4 as a killer-for-hire who helps the Shelbys in exchange for letting his boxing champion son join the Peaky Blinders. He remained at their side after his son died and even married Polly. However, he was killed in the most recent episode, another victim of his association with the Blinders.
Sir Oswald Mosley
Of the many antagonists who have appeared on the series, Sir Oswald Mosley feels different from the rest. While he doesn't have the violent nature of others, Oswald Mosley is something of a monster who is capable of some pretty terrible things.
He can be obsessive, and the way he treats his past with Lizzie is insulting to both her and Tommy. Mosley is all about political maneuvering and his fascist outlook is scary. Plus, Mosley outsmarted Tommy in the season 5 finale and looks to be the main threat in the upcoming final set of episodes.
Gina Gray
Along with Mosley, Gina Gray is the most recent character to join the show. Played by the always impressive Anya Taylor-Joy, Gina debuts as the girlfriend of Michael Gray, who he meets while working in America. En route back to England, the two get married, and she becomes a force after that.
Gina has Michael's back and doesn't like the way some of his family members treat him. She helps him come up with the idea to restructure the family business, effectively having Michael replace Tommy. Though that doesn't go over well, she shows no fear of Tommy, Polly, or anyone else. Her role in the final season is one of the most intriguing things about it.
Luca Changretta
It could be argued that Luca Changretta was the show's greatest villain. Not only was he a formidable foe at every turn but Luca also caused the death of John Shelby, which was one of the series' most heartbreaking moments. Luca made an instant impact with a tense conversation with Tommy in his second episode.
The talk basically laid out the fact that Luca planned to kill every Shelby and make Tommy watch. The Blinders killed his father and brother, so Luca's quest for revenge was understandable. That helped make him a layered antagonist, and it took Tommy some true maneuvering and faking Arthur's death to beat him.
Michael Gray
When Michael was first introduced in season 2, it was a happy story. He was Polly's long lost son who was mostly an innocent kid, but the lifestyle of his family members around him quickly called to Michael. He jumped at the chance to be part of the business.
Michael is a complex character as he loves his mother and represents good for her, but he's also power hungry and prone to violence. Though he craves more important roles, his family often shuts him out, making him an interesting part of their dynamic.
Alfie Solomons
As soon as Alfie Solomons showed up in season 2, fans were blown away as they likely didn't expect Tom Hardy to make an appearance. Yet Hardy has remained with the show ever since and is arguably the most popular character due to how often he steals every scene he's in.
Alfie is the leader of a Jewish gang, and he has a complicated relationship with Tommy. They're sometimes in an alliance, and they've tried killing each other on numerous occasions. The revelation that he was alive at the end of season 5 was a great moment as it means more of Alfie in the future. Ever mannerism and line of dialogue is expertly handled by Hardy to make him a truly special character.