Bare-knuckle boxing and one of London’s most notorious criminal gangs provide a potent one-two punch in the upcoming historical drama A Thousand Blows.
Created by Peaky Blinders showrunner Steven Knight, the series began streaming Friday on Hulu and tells the story of boxer Hezekiah Moscow and trainer Alec Munroe. Friends from Jamaica, the pair find themselves thrust into the 1880s London fight scene where they encounter vicious rival Henry “Sugar” Goodson and Mary Carr, the leader of the all-female Forty Elephants faction.
Although the events of A Thousand Blows are mostly fictional, Knight drew inspiration from Victorian era figures for his unique cast of characters. As you settle in for all six rounds—er, episodes—here’s everything you need to know about their real-life counterparts.
Hezekiah Moscow and Alec Munroe were actual friends
The trailer for A Thousand Blows shows friends Hezekiah Moscow (played by Malachi Kirby) and Alec Munroe (Francis Lovehall) arriving in London and eager to “make some money in the ring.” The two were, in fact, boxing partners from the era.
According to researcher Sarah Elizabeth Cox, who served as a historical consultant for the series, the real Moscow was born in the Caribbean around 1862 and became known by the derogatory names “Ching Hook” and “Ching Ghook.” The nicknames—rooted in racist slurs against Asian people—possibly stemmed from a journalist at a London pub saying Moscow “looked a bit Chinese,” per Cox.
Although there are only three official records of Hezekiah Moscow, he regularly appeared in newspaper articles. Most concerned his involvement in boxing, though reports from 1884 describe him as an employee of the East London Aquarium. The Leeds Times called him a “lion tamer.”
By November 1882, Moscow had won a half dozen boxing competitions. His trainer and sparring partner was Alec Munroe, who was born in Kingston, Jamaica, around 1850 and arrived in England about 20 years later. A well-known figure among the London boxing scene because of their partnership, Munroe is remembered primarily for his highly publicized death.
Munroe died following a confrontation at a lodging house in September 1885, according to Cox. Around 20,000 reportedly lined Bethnal Green Road for his memorial procession. After police mistakenly accused a teenager of killing Munroe, 26-year-old Thomas Hewington admitted he lost his temper over comments the drunk boxer made and said he accidentally stabbed Munroe with his knife. Hewington was found not guilty of murder nor manslaughter and released.
After his trainer’s death, Moscow continued boxing into the 1890s. During this period, he got married to a woman named Mary, and the couple had a daughter, Eliza. There is evidence he relocated to New York at some point, though his family likely didn’t join him. The well-known boxer died sometime around 1901, as a census listed Mary as a widow at this time, but there are no records of his death or possible grave location.
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Sugar Goodson survived smallpox
In A Thousand Blows, one of the boxers Moscow meets in the ring is Sugar Goodson (played by Stephen Graham, who is also an executive producer). There’s no record of Goodson ever fighting Moscow, so it appears their rivalry was created for dramatic effect.
Cox writes that the real Goodson was born off Brick Lane in London’s East End on February 19, 1856. One of 13 siblings, he began working for his family’s hauling business after his father’s death in 1877. He married his wife, Ann, the year prior, and the couple had at least four children. The “strongly built” Goodson began appearing in boxing reports in the late 1870s for competing at the Mile End Gate Tavern and other pubs.
A census from 1881 listed Goodson as residing at a smallpox hospital in the New Cross area of the city. This could help explain a written report that described one of Goodson’s eyes as being closed up “for ten or a dozen years” by 1882. Although this suggests he had limited sight since his teenage years, it’s possible the author actually meant months—and the smallpox might have been the cause.
Goodson didn’t let his impairment keep him out of the ring, as he competed against both middleweight and heavyweight opponents. The locations of these bouts were kept secret, as such prize fights were illegal. His most infamous match was in 1882 against an older boxer named Jack Hicks inside a deconsecrated chapel. During the third round, police stopped the fight and arrested 10 men including Goodson but not his opponent, suggesting the scene might have been a setup. Goodson was charged with being the principal engaged in a prize fight but eventually let off with a warning.
Little is known about Goodson’s life after this, though he did box again in 1911 around age 56. He died six years later.
Mary Carr was the “Queen” of the Forty Elephants
A Thousand Blows intertwines these boxing figures with the rise of the Forty Elephants criminal gang, helmed by “Queen” Mary Carr (played by Erin Doherty). Like the show’s pugilists, Carr and her enterprise are based on true events in Victorian London.
According to author and researcher Beezy March, the real-life ring leader was born in 1864 and began her criminal exploits early in life. At age 12, she went to jail for petty theft. Carr—who went by several aliases, including “Polly” Carr and Eva Jackson—eventually became the highest-ranking member of the Forty Elephants, a group known for shoplifting from expensive London department stores. Often serving as a decoy, Carr distracted store attendants while other members made off with clothing and jewelry that they hid in their underwear, or “hoister’s drawers.”
Apparently as pretty as she was devious, Carr also served as a painting model for Lord Frederic Leighton, the former president of London’s Royal Academy of Arts. We’ll never know if he put her appearance to canvas accurately, though. No photographs of Carr are known to exist today.
Carr’s thievery caught up to her in 1896, when she was apprehended for stealing a 6-year-old named Joseph McGee. According to March, Carr witnessed the boy’s mother beating him and believed she could give the child a better life. She did spoil McGee with toys and clothing but was later captured. Carr received a three-year sentence of penal servitude for the kidnapping.
That punishment did little to set her straight. Carr was sentenced to 20 months hard labor in 1900 for receiving stolen goods then, in 1905, she was caught shoplifting. Carr is believed to have died in 1924 around the age of 60.
Carr didn’t collaborate with Moscow or Goodson
While Carr was indeed a famous figure of the Forty Elephants, A Thousand Blows plays loose with the group’s exploits. There is no record of Carr collaborating with Moscow or Goodson, and the Forty Elephants weren’t affiliated with London’s boxing scene.
The series also involves Alice Diamond (played by Darci Shaw), another real-life criminal who succeeded Carr as the leader of the Forty Elephants and led the group to more notoriety. However, Diamond wasn’t born until 1896—after the time period when A Thousand Blows is set. The criminal enterprise continued operating until the 1950s.
As Cox writes on her blog Grappling with History, “the characters and storylines [of A Thousand Blows] are the creation of a wonderful team of writers, and it is only in little snippets here and there that they cross paths with reality.”
Watch A Thousand Blows on Hulu
Despite the factual inaccuracies, showrunner Steven Knight found the opportunity to showcase both London’s organized crime and underground boxing scenes too good to pass up. He spoke about his affinity for the time period in a recent interview with Deadline.
“You have this big melting pot of London which was the capital of the world at the time and all kinds of things going on that as a writer of fiction you wouldn’t dare make up,” said Knight, who also wrote the 2024 biopic Maria starring Angelina Jolie as Maria Callas. “So to put all those things together, the madness of London and the weirdness of real life gives the oxygen you need to write something.”
You can watch all six episodes of A Thousand Blows now on Hulu. The series stars Malachi Kirby, Stephen Graham, Erin Doherty, and Francis Lovehall.
Tyler Piccotti joined the Biography.com staff as an Associate News Editor and is now the News and Culture Editor. He previously worked as a reporter and copy editor for a daily newspaper recognized by the Associated Press Sports Editors. In his current role, he shares the true stories behind your favorite movies and TV shows and profiles rising musicians, actors, and athletes. When he's not working, you can find him at the nearest amusement park or movie theater and cheering on his favorite teams.
