Q&A: Writer David Watson on A DoL House

BAFTA award-winning writer David Watson talks to us about A DoL House, his new play for arts charity organisation The Big House — exploring the hidden world of Deprivation of Liberty orders, the young people caught inside the care system, and how a static situation became the heart of a gripping piece of theatre.

For anyone coming to the show knowing nothing about it, how would you describe A DoL House and the world it takes the audience into? The play is about Leyla, a teenager in the care system, who has been taken from her childrens home and placed in an unknown house, in an unknown part of London, to be kept under twenty-four hour supervision. The people – (the men) – responsible for her are agency workers of limited or no appropriate training or experience. Leyla comes to find this is a DoL placement – Deprivation of Liberty, and that she’s far from the only vulnerable young person being held in un-regulated placements, with no clear timeframe for release – all to keep them ‘safe.’ How did you first come across Deprivation of Liberty orders, and what was your reaction when you began to understand the scale of the problem? I heard about it through Maggie Norris, who runs the Big House – I’d never heard of a DoL before, let alone how much they’re being used. It’s appalling; another symptom of how the welfare and care system is proving unfit for purpose, in ways that remain under the radar to many people. The play draws on real-life interviews with High Court judges, legal experts, and care-leavers. How did those conversations shape the character of Leyla? To ‘qualify’ for a DoL you have to be in a position of particular, multi-faceted vulnerability and need. Maybe if you were creating a character for a play in the normal scheme of things you might shy away from laying on so many problems – gang involvement, suicidal, sexual exploitation.... but the truth is that harshest of conditions are being inflicted on the most vulnerable. There were so many anecdotes that have made it into the play... Judges desperately googling care placements in their area because there’s just such pressure on places... Young people being confined to canal boats or caravans... And as for the people themselves, the subjects of the DoLs are often kind of very vital and bloody but unbowed.... but I didn’t want to sentimentalise the character either. These situations cause lasting damage. How are you finding rehearsals so far? Is there anything particularly challenging or rewarding? It’s always exciting to see how its shaping up. A challenge of the play was to take what’s essentially a static situation and forge a dramatic journey out of it; I’ve tried to do that through the relationship between Leyla and the carers looking after her; it becomes a kind of power struggle for influence... The actors are all excellent and I know are producing something very moving but also surprisingly funny in places too. You've worked with The Big House on several productions now — what keeps bringing you back to work with this company? The quality of the actors. The importance of the stories. It’s a unique company, really, in that it takes its responsibilities very seriously but also has a great sense of fun and possibility around it; Big House shows don’t feel ‘worthy.’ What do you hope audiences leave the theatre thinking or doing after seeing A DoL House? I hope it will spread awareness of the problem. Sometimes in plays the characters aren’t able to change or escape their fate - but the play still has the capacity to change the audience. Hopefully people will come away angry and inspired...

A DoL House is a new play by David Watson, produced by The Big House and performed at their venue in Islington from 17 June-11 July 2026. For more information and tickets, visit https://www.ticketsource.com/thebighouse/a-dol-house/e-zkegvp