Peaky Blinders cast smokes herbal tobacco

The \'Peaky Blinders\' cast smokes herbal tobacco throughout filming the BBC series, according to Helen McCrory.

The 50-year-old actress - who plays Polly Gray in the hit show - has revealed that the cast make their way through around 5,000 cigarettes during each series of the programme.

She told the Sunday Mirror newspaper: "They use herbal tobacco which has no nicotine and tastes horrible. They\'re the same type they smoke in theatre productions.

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"I used to go to plays for years and wonder why they had a [cannabis joint] on the go during a play and how they could remember their lines.

"It smells, to a layman like me, like someone is smoking cannabis. It\'s just a bit funny and not like tobacco."

Meanwhile, Helen recently confessed she couldn\'t watch the "disgustingly violent" opening episode of the new series of \'Peaky Blinders\'.

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The actress warned fans about "disturbing" scenes in the fifth season, but she insisted the portrayal of such savagery "should be horrifying".

She said: "It is very violent and it\'s really horrible and you should look away.

"I\'ve only seen episode one, and there\'s a whole bit ... We saw the screening in Birmingham, for fans who managed to get lottery tickets.

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"I look away from the screen. I as Helen can\'t watch it. I think it\'s disgusting, gratuitous violence. It is ... no, not gratuitous - disgustingly violent.

"But it is. And it should be. I think it\'s much more disturbing than somebody slashes somebody\'s face or somebody shoots somebody and it\'s all just the end of it."