The Ragman’s Daughter 1972

An opening memory lingers with the Old Man on Wagon watching over Tony Bradmore (played by Simon Rouse) as he grows up in a crumbling, working-class neighborhood where scarcity and the thrill of small crimes sketch the shape of his days. The young Tony, unemployed and living with his parents among row after row of decaying terraces, numbs his frustrations with petty theft, not only to get the things he wants but for the pulse of danger that comes with it.

At a local fish and chip shop, Tony crosses paths with the striking Doris Randall. Doris comes from a markedly higher social stratum—her father, a prosperous scrap merchant, has moved the family into a nicer house, money buying her elegant clothes, a horse, and a chance at expensive schooling. Yet Doris is drawn to Tony’s world of risk and freedom, a pull that his friends share as they drift through their neighbourhood’s limited opportunities. Doris’s father disapproves of the connection, believing his daughter should mingle with people who match their social ascent, and he works to steer her away from Tony.

The couple’s romance deepens into a plan to run away together, but Doris resists such a leap. Still, she lures Tony into ever bolder burglaries, encouraging him to bring her along and even prompting risky moves during crimes. The most telling moment comes when they burgle a shoe shop: Doris deliberately lights up the shop and presses Tony to stay inside, heightening the danger. The police close in, and while they momentarily escape, Tony leaves behind enough evidence to tie him to the theft. He is arrested and sent to borstal, ending the early chapters of his relationship with Doris. On his release, he learns that Doris was pregnant, and that she eventually married another man before the child was born. Doris and her husband are later killed in a motorcycle crash, and Doris’s parents adopt the child. Tony, deprived of contact with his son, steals a radio in broad daylight on a busy street and is quickly apprehended.

Years pass, and Tony now moves through life as a cheese factory worker. He continues the pattern of petty theft, sneaking cheese home to his wife and their young sons, a family life that remains loving despite the ongoing strain of his compulsions. When police misinterpret a routine bag search as part of a major bank robbery, they question Tony and search him, leading to his manager firing him. The charge never sticks, but the sting lingers: his wife remains supportive, even as Tony keeps thinking about Doris and the life he might have had. He consoles himself with the belief that a fresh start is possible, even telling himself he could secure a new job with a butcher, if only the world would give him that chance.