Sad, funny, honest and, in the end, full of hope
Robbie is 17. His sister Cel is 20. They’ve grown up in and out of the care system, different placements, different addresses, always finding their way back to each other. Cel wants to go to university. Robbie wants them to finally live together in one place. Neither of those things seems too much to ask.
What follows is Robbie’s journey back through every place he’s lived, every moment they shared, every argument and tender exchange, trying to understand how they got here, and whether any of it was his fault.
Lin Coghlan’s play is a portrait of grief, love and resilience told through the eyes of a young man who sees the world through the behaviour of birds: free, loyal, and pecking the shit out of each other. It is sad, funny, honest and, in the end, full of hope.
Flock is set in Lewisham, rooted in Lewisham, and made with and for the people of Lewisham. There are 461 children in the borough without a family home. This play is not about statistics. It’s about what that actually feels like.
Directed by Jim Pope, Flock follows siblings Robbie and Cel as they navigate the care system and early adulthood. Developed through sustained engagement with care-experienced young people, the production exemplifies PlayingON’s model of creating professional theatre rooted in lived experience.
layingON was founded in 2010 by the late playwright Philip Osment and Artistic Director Jim Pope with a bold vision: to harness the power of theatre to platform the voices of marginalised communities: https://www.playingon.org.uk/
Today, partnerships exist with Lewisham College, Spotlight Youth Services, Rose Bruford, and many others.
The Jack Studio Theatre, 410 Brockley Road, London, SE4 2DH
Tues 29 Sept – Sat 3 Oct 2026 at 7.30pm Saturday 3 Oct Matinee at 3.00pm
Box office: www.brockleyjack.co.uk or 0333 666 3366 (£1.80 fee for phone bookings only)
