When Davie is released from prison after an assault conviction, he moves in with his brother, aspiring police officer Freddie, and Freddie’s girlfriend Laura. However, Davie’s presence leads to old wounds reopening between the two brothers, particularly as they struggle to progress in society.

The script by Alexander Artis effectively makes the tensions between Davie and Freddie obvious from the start, even during the brothers’ first awkward interactions after Davie’s release. This tension slowly escalates throughout the rest of the play, skilfully including debates about how addiction should be treated within the justice system, and the prospects of reemployment for released prisoners through Davie’s arguments with Freddie.

Interspersed throughout are scenes where the characters speak to a respective professional depicted through voice over, that provide greater insights into how their shared living situation affects them. These segments prevent the play from becoming too claustrophobic and gives the character of Laura greater agency by allowing her to voice how events are affecting her, avoiding the trap of making her a passive supportive female role. The use of this device also allows Davie to voice his internal confusion over whether his actions are motivated by addiction or something darker, effectively personifying similar broader debates about criminal behaviour.

A later revelation about Davie’s past, as well as Freddie’s growing instability, could have resulted in a darker ending in lesser hands. However, a more realistic approach is taken based around losing and regaining trust that not only provides light at the end of the tunnel, but also allows the characters to stay realistically nuanced.

The overall performances are excellent, with Conor Fallon convincingly depicting how Freddie’s intense dedication towards pursuing a career as a police officer boils over into seething hatred of Davie’s actions and addiction. Fallon is particularly strong in the latter scenes, as Freddie’s push towards breaking point leads to him appearing to almost viscerally break down on stage.

Artis embodies a different kind of tension as Davie, showing a coiled up aggression in early scenes as he tries to prove his changed character but later displaying his vulnerability as he struggles with societal judgement of his past. Abbie Robertson also does a great job with the smaller role of Laura, convincingly showing the difficulties of being caught in the middle between the brothers whilst working a difficult job as a nurse.

Halfway Home is an intensely harrowing yet moving portrayal of the difficulties faced by released prisoners and their families that pulls no punches.

Halfway Home is at Space 3 at theSpace on the Mile until Sat 22 Aug 2026