The last thing Patrick Corregan wants is another mouth to feed so he does his best to ensure that Billy does not survive. But survive he does, with the help of a warm-hearted prostitute and Laura Caldwell, the daughter of a wealthy local family.Patrick deserts his family and Billy struggles to eke out a meagre living, all the while looking after his alcoholic mother. As he matures, so does his obsession with Laura. One day, he dreams, he will win her heart, but Laura has other ideas, and it is with Bridget, the prostitute's daughter, that Billy joins the Jarrow crusaders marching to London to demonstrate against unemployment.Neither of them, however, is prepared for the reappearance of the evil Patrick Corregan...