A NEW attraction dedicated to a national treasure and Peaky Blinders TV star is set to open this summer. Legendary poet and campaigner Benjamin Zephaniah passed away last December after being diagnosed with a brain tumour aged 65. Born in Handsworth, Birmingham, in 1958, Zephaniah became a professor of poetry despite being dyslexic and expelled from school, unable to read or write.
He went on to have his poems studied by English GCSE students and starred in the TV-hit show Peaky Blinders as Jeremiah “Jimmy” Jesus. He starred in six series of the drama, which also featured Cillian Murphy and Tom Hardy. A new outdoor exhibition called Benjamin Zephaniah – The Brighter Flame will honour the Birmingham-born poet.
The outdoor exhibition will be located in Victoria Square in the heart of the city and will feature more than 20 pieces of artwork, according to local news website Colmore Business District . Each piece of artwork will be displayed inside a cabinet in Victoria Square, with pieces slated to include large-scale black and white portrait photographs of the poet, as well as other poems written by the talented writer. Flags designed in the poet's memory will also fly high on Colmore Row - a street in Birmingham that runs from Victoria Square to Birmingham Snow Hill Station .
Benjamin Zephaniah's brother, David O Springer, will also speak at n invitation-only spoken word event in the city. The outdoor exhibition has been created with the support of the Zephaniah family. T.
