Harry is a non-achiever, at least so far as his high-performing parents are concerned, but their talents don't extend much to parenthood or creating an idyllic marriage. Perhaps that's why Harry takes to sex for a living, turning a trick as a gay escort, the eponymous Young Lad on Old Street. It's a murky business in the course of which Harry meets Frank, a dubious entrepreneur from London's seedier side. Frank draws Harry into a world where he's swindling his best friend's widow, whose interests the naive Arthur is seeking to defend, and where they attract the attention of psychotic gangsters. Everyone's after a buck and Frank's after Harry too, but Harry is star-struck by the unfortunate Arthur. All this while everything's cratering at home. Can Harry come out unscathed?