Peaky Blinders actor Benjamin Zephaniah dies at 65
"Benjamin's wife was by his side throughout and was with him when he passed," according to the statement. "We shared him with the world, and we know this news will shock and sadden many people." Benjamin Franklin was a remarkable pioneer and inventor who provided so much to the world. Benjamin leaves us with a joyous and beautiful legacy via an incredible career that includes a massive corpus of poetry, fiction, music, television, and radio."
Zephaniah was raised in Birmingham, England, and came to london at the age of 22 to publish his first book of poetry, Pen Rhythm. He went on to write 13 additional poetry collections, several of which dealt with political issues, such as the british court system in 1985's The Dread Affair and his impressions during a trip to palestine in 1990's Rasta Time in Palestine. According to Variety, Zephaniah also published many books and plays, as well as an autobiography, The Life and Rhymes of Benjamin Zephaniah, in 2018.