lady-of-the-english

[lady-of-the-english]

There is just such intimacy in the looks Grace and Tommy exchange. They are having an entire conversation with that eye contact. They know each other.

While Grace is Tommy's "posh girl" and definitely came from more wealth and privilege than the Shelbys, Tommy is unwilling to let Grace be in a subservient position to Tatiana.

Initally, Grace is "impressed" that a real Duchess came to her foundations dinner. We see earlier in the episode how important the foundation is to Grace, how geniuely excited that people responded to her RSVPs, and that she can accomplish something meaningful. A member of nobility could bring respectability, attention, and money to her cause.

But Tommy is not going to let Tatiana have any power over Grace in this exchange. He immediately let's Grace understand that she is here for nefarious means and shouldn't be trusted. He basically calls Tatiana a prostitute saying she "charges a fee" for her presence and thus not someone he's even going to pretend to respect in front of Grace.

He is very "direct" to let Grace know that while he's keeping business from her to keep her safe, there is nothing to be jealous over.

And Grace understands this. Her look speaks volumes about how much fun she's going to have getting the full truth out of him later (we know how she did it at their wedding reception). Tommy swallows, knowing he's in for it, but he looks at her unashamedly making eye contact back, promising her everything, as they both know she has nothing to worry about on that front.

#grace burgess #tommy x grace #grace shelby #tommy shelby #peaky blinders

[lady-of-the-english]

Grace's Wedding Dress

Something I see discussed so much on SM about Tommy and Grace's wedding is how 'horrible' her dress was or how frumpy/dowdy they made her, particularly in comparison to her S2 look and how she was dressed at the Gala.

Can we all take a step back for a moment and just assess WHY she wore such a modest wedding dress in such a formal colour? To quote the girl herself 'half of the British Army are downstairs'.

Grace comes from an EXTREMELY conservative, aristocratic, military family from whom she appears almost entirely estranged. We learn that the only reason they even attend her wedding isn't that her family love her or care about her or WANT to attend her wedding. No, they come out of respect for Tommy's war records.

Let's let that just settle for a moment. They would have allowed their niece who has NO FAMILY, NO PARENTS, NO SIBLINGS to marry alone because they don't like the man she is marrying.

Why is that? Not that it's ever explained but I would say it is safe to say they know she left her husband for Tommy. Her closest family know that, at least. No, they don't know Tommy is Charlie's biological Father (not that it takes a genius) but they know that she has been living in sin with him for a good amount of time and they do not approve, not in the slightest.

Grace knows this. Tommy knows this. It's partly why he hates them in his house so much. They have disrespected him and his wife before the wedding has even started by turning up in uniform DESPITE their request not to. Does Tommy kick them out? No. Does he say anything? No. Why? Because 'for Grace's sake, nothing will go wrong. Those BASTARDS out there are her family.'

Grace Burgess, who gave up everything to be with Thomas Shelby, tailored her entire wedding for the purpose of regaining the respect of her family. The hair? Reserved. The dress? Modest. The reception? Traditional. The venue? Her posh home. Charlie? Kept out the way.

She did everything she was supposed to and Tommy supported it because he knew how much it meant to her.

The wedding was meant to be out of character, the dress was meant to be boring. That was what she was going for.

She wanted them to like her again. The girl who had no one just wanted to be loved and respected by her family and those fuckers didn't give one shiny fuck. What hurts is that Tommy knew that and he didn't say a word. Just drank his wine and let her believe any of it made a difference.

On their wedding day we gain just the slightest perspective into what Grace's life was like before she met Tommy. Grace who grew up to become an undercover operative. Grace who loved so fucking hard. Grace who was fun and passionate and spirited was surrounded by those kinds of people. Stuck up, traditional, reserved, judgemental, horrible people. Perhaps also safe to say that's also what her parents were like.

And who stepped up? The Shelbys. Despite EVERYTHING. Who sat through the entire thing, supported her, supported their brother, respected the sanctity of her wedding day and fought to keep the fact the Russians had turned up from her? The Shelbys.

Polly fucking Grey cared more about Grace's well-being on her wedding day than her own family did and that? That is fucking devastating.

So no, it's not just an 'ugly' dress or a hairstyle. It's the fact that that night she is back to a silken nightie. It's the fact however many weeks later she is in a strapless fucking ballgown with a fuck off sapphire hanging from her chest as she schmoozes with Birmingham's elite.

It's the fact that when her boring family are downstairs, she's shagging the truth about international business dealings from her gangster husband whilst wearing glittery, diamond-encrusted garters under said reserved wedding dress.

That was Grace, the real Grace. The Grace Tommy (and we) fell in love with. It was nothing to do with poor taste. She wanted to appear respectable, just for the day.

The show completely whitewashes the HELL Grace would have gone through prior to her husband's suicide.

She could not file for divorce, women weren't allowed. She could not retain custody of her own child if she left her husband, he had to consent. Her name would have been published in the paper, she would have had to stand up in court and confess to adultery, her child was legally the property of her husband, she would have lost every asset that she brought into the marriage.

She would have been socially shunned, ridiculed, cast out of respectable society. But did she care? Not a jot. She loved Tommy, unconditionally, unwaveringly loved him and threw her life away to be with him. The bravery of that is unparalleled by any other character in the show and what makes it haunting is the reality of it. Grace Burgess was every woman in the 20th century who married the wrong man - stuck.

Grace is the most complex character in the show and you cannot convince me otherwise and she was snuffed out on a whim. She would have been magnificent. Damn you SK, damn you.

#grace burgess #Grace Shelby #tommy x grace #tommy shelby #peaky blinders

[lady-of-the-english]

Marriage is my comfort episode

#grace burgess #grace shelby #tommy and grace #tommy shelby #tommy x grace #peaky blinders

[lady-of-the-english]

give you the silence that only comes when two people understand each other for @letojessica

#leto atreides #lady jessica #leto x jessica #dune

[lady-of-the-english]

I'm pregnant. The baby is yours.

#yes to all this! #do i ned to work on part 5 of my own meta to consider this?? #yes but who has the time!!! #let's be real #i wouldnt get to it til part 6 #tommy shelby #grace shelby #tommy x grace #grace burgess #peaky blinders

[lady-of-the-english]

This is one of the reasons why Tommy respected Grace and fell in love with her, she showed him that she demanded respect and that she valued herself.

She wasn't afraid of anyone, she could alone, against everyone, Polly, Campbell, Tommy, May, Tatiana. She always had an answer, she was intelligent and she was bold. She was never going to allow herself to be called property or insulted. And for Tommy, she was the only one who didn't let him believe that he was a God, and that he could get his way, that's why with her, he was his best version.

But there is also the other part of Grace, she could be soft, loving, gentle, have a sense of humor, Tommy loved that, and she was a good friend and companion to Tommy, she was his other half. And a good mother for Charlie.

They complemented each other. They loved each other, what no one else loved, they understood each other in their silences and understood the reason for their darkness. Together they healed and brought out the best version of the other. They adored each other, and admired each other. True love.

#peaky blinders #tommy x grace #tommy shelby #grace shelby #grace burgess

[lady-of-the-english]

#I will never emotionally recover from this #tommy x grace #tommy shelby #grace burgess #grace shelby #peaky blinders

[lady-of-the-english]

Remember the time when Tatiana wanted to fck Tommy “for the cause” and he rudely dismissed her.

..while years later, he fcked Diana for “the cause”, without resistance or negotiation, because his cause was his priority!

Tatiana couldn’t even beat a dead Grace “you didn’t even come close” whereas Diana walked all over Lizzie “I got what I wanted”

#the only thing sacred is Grace #tommy shelby #tommy x grace #grace shelby #grace burgess #peaky blinders

[lady-of-the-english]

The way they used some soft piano music in the background of some scenes in 3x1 is so smart

We can first hear it when Grace and Tommy are done arguing in their bedroom upstairs and they are about to have sex while their guests are waiting. Then we hear it again when they dance together and they are having a conversation. Tommy saying “I promise. No guns in the house, and Charles will never see one. I love you. I promise, I’ll make us safe”

The piano music and the background noises disappearing make those moments so magical and unique. They were in their own little bubble. Those were the happiest days of Tommy’s life after the war

#peaky blinders #tommy x grace #tommy shelby #grace shelby #grace burgess

[lady-of-the-english]

I love the way Grace always touches his face 🥰 I wonder if this is the author's idea or did Annabel come up with this "feature" herself? I've read that in the language of touch, this means the desire to express love nonverbally ❤

#is anyone else gentle with Tommy? #Is Tommy so gentle with any one else #they just forget the whole world when they are with each other #tommy shelby #tommy x grace #grace shelby #grace burgess #peaky blinders

[lady-of-the-english]

Peaky official page saying it loud and clear again 💅🏼

#tommy x grace #tommy shelby #peaky blinders #grace burgess #grace shelby

[lady-of-the-english]

I saw a comment from a Lizzie fan saying that Grace represents a fantasy to Tommy and Lizzie is his reality and what he needs. And I think the show shows something similar to that, and very clearly.

Grace is not fantasy, but hope and happiness for Tommy, hope that maybe he can have the life he wants so much and be happy. But he doesn't deserve to be happy, so life took it out of him and gave him reality, the reality that Tommy deserves, unhappiness, and it is represented by Lizzie. Not for her herself, but for the life he has with her. He has a life with a woman who does not give him peace or happiness, he cannot sleep with her, and his life feels empty. He needs to be with other women, he prefers to go to another country, and when he feels most alone, the only thing that helps him is taking opium so he can see Grace, see her, hear her voice, that's the only thing that really gives him peace.

And they represent it very well, life with Grace, he couldn't stop laughing, he always wanted to be in the house, it was his safe place, his paradise, he took time to be able to be with Grace and Charlie,.spent time together .They had conversations together, they joked, they were affectionate.

Life with Lizzie, he never smiled, he was always working, outside the house, when he returned home it was all darkness and sadness, he didn't spend time with her, they didn't have conversations, they were never affectionate, it was always dramas, complaints, crying, screaming, he was drunk and depressed, in S6, simply depressed.

And the show itself represented them well, Grace is represented by the white swan and Lizzie is represented by the black swan, clearer than that impossible..

Grace is light here.

Lizzie is dark and black swan in her jacket.

Thoughts? @camewiththeframe @tommyxgrace-always @peakyv @lady-of-the-english @mary-fantg @daisybrekker

#this #all the things ive been too busy this week to add on #tommy x grace #peaky blinders #lizzy x tommy

[lady-of-the-english]

on my peaky rewatch again and holy shit, cillian's acting in this scene is just next fucking level. it physically hurts to watch and is one of the most visceral, agonisingly brilliant performances i've ever seen - how the fuck did he not get an emmy for his work on this show

#This ! #I love every word. #peaky blinders #tommy x grace #charlie shelby #grace shelby #tommy shelby #grace burgess

[lady-of-the-english]

I'll just never get over him implying that Grace takes away his pain and keeps him warm physically (like the fire) and emotionally. He is so comforted by her presence. Her jokes help him lighten up emotionally. When with Grace, he doesn't dwell on all him problems. He imagines her holding him, and he closes his eyes to bask in. He totally let's his guard done, feeling safe and loved when alone with Grace. She is still the only person he can even imagine himself being truly vulnerable with.

PEAKY BLINDERS: 5x01

#tommy x grace #grace shelby #tommy shelby #peaky blinders #grace burgess

[lady-of-the-english]

i cannot live without my soul — emily bronte, wuthering heights

#dune #lady jessica #leto atreides #leto x jessica #wuthering heights

[lady-of-the-english]

I completely agree, and Tommy himself asserts this idea at the end of season 2 in the grave season. He says, "There's a woman." To him, there is a singular woman that he truly wants and loves. She is "everything."

And all those years later spent without her, it is still her pictures, lock of hair, and their wedding ring that Tommy holds on.

Thinking about these two scenes of Polly telling him "there will be others" and two years later ,in S2 she tells him "it was only one woman, I think you should forget about her", for me, it is the show telling us that for Tommy there is only one woman. There is no comparison .For him, there is Grace and then the other women Lizzie, May, Jesse Eden, etc. They don't mix. No one is going to replace Grace, in his heart, and mind. And at the end of S6, no one did. He never loved anyone so much, he never fell in love with another woman again, because he never stopped loving Grace, he will always continue to love her. And he knows that the others are not going to make him feel alive, at peace, happy, like she did. The only thing I can forgive Steven Knight( at least a little lol) for is because he doesn't replace Grace with anyone.

Thoughts? @camewiththeframe @justins-foley @mary-fantg @tommyxgrace-always @lady-of-the-english and anyone who wants to comments.

#tommy x grace #tommy shelby #grace shelby #grace burgess #peaky blinders

[lady-of-the-english]

There’s someone… f o r  a  l o n g  t i m e

#a woman who I love #grace burgess #thomas shelby #tommy x grace #peaky blinders #grace shelby