Prostitute

Sandra is a Birmingham-based sex worker who dreams of earning more to support her child and escape precarious street work. She navigates hostile clients and police pressure, eventually attempting to move to London before returning to Birmingham to care for her son. Her journey shows resilience, maternal concern, and a longing for greater autonomy within a hostile system.

Rose is Sandra’s friend who lives with her mother and has multiple children. She is arrested by the vice squad and pressured to plead guilty, serving a short prison sentence. After release, she rejoins her mother and the broader community of sex workers, embodying vulnerability and solidarity.

Louise is a social worker who campaigns for sex workers’ rights, recruiting Rose’s mother to start a discussion group. Her activism draws attention from a BBC documentary, even as she confronts institutional pressure. She develops a complicated relationship with Griff while staying focused on reform.

Griff is a lecturer on penal reform who takes an interest in Louise’s cause but reveals a lack of real understanding of sex workers’ lives. He becomes part of the story’s discourse on policy and reform, illustrating how theory can misread lived experience.

Andrea is a London-based sex worker who helps Sandra transition into a different line of work and warns her about the exploitative boss, Mrs. T. She guides Sandra toward more precarious work environments and ultimately cuts ties as circumstances change.

Mrs. T is an abrasive local boss in London who exploits workers and pressures them to accept unsafe conditions. Her operation embodies the predatory side of the sex-work economy and the vulnerability of workers who lack protections.

Winston is a longtime friend who helps Sandra look after her teenage son during transitional periods and supports her activism. He serves as a steady, pragmatic ally within the community, offering practical help and emotional support.

Rose’s mother is an elder figure in the community who participates in recruiting others to form discussion groups. Her past experience as a sex worker informs her involvement and lends legitimacy to the organizing efforts.

Joseph is Sandra’s teenage son, whose welfare motivates her decisions and search for stability. Although not central to every scene, his presence anchors the film’s emphasis on parental responsibility and protective instincts.