'Herons' is a sensitive and mournful play about urban disaffection and brutality, a deeply affecting examination of vulnerability and violence. The play is set around Limehouse Cut and the Lee River in East London, by a sluggish and almost-lifeless canal, where 14 year-old Billy fishes every day. As he waits patiently for his usual catches, the miserable history of his life and the canal slowly emerges. 'Herons' premiered at the Royal Court Theatre, London, in 2001.