London Tide

The genius of Dickens meets PJ Harvey's fierce, lyrical songs in this romantic and propulsive thriller adapted by Ben Power (The Lehman Brothers).

It begins like this. With the dusk and the storm and the Thames.



A storm rages and, in the darkest part of the night, a body is pulled from the swirling Thames.



Across the city, two young women confront an uncertain future. In Limehouse, Lizzie Hexam struggles to break free of the river and its dark secrets. On the other side of town, Bella Wilfer mourns a lost marriage. The appearance of the mysterious John Rokesmith has the potential to change their lives for ever. Will they sink or swim?



A hymn to the city and the river that runs through it, London Tide premiered at the National Theatre, London, in April 2024.



Ben Power is a writer and dramaturg and an Associate of the National Theatre. His plays include his Tony Award-winning adaptation of The Lehman Trilogy (National Theatre, West End, Broadway). His screenplays include Munich: The Edge of War (Netflix) and the BAFTA-winning The Hollow Crown (BBC).



PJ Harvey is a multi-instrumentalist, singer-songwriter, and poet. She has released ten studio albums including Dry, Rid of Me, Stories From the City, Stories from the Sea, Let England Shake and I Inside the Old Year Dying. Her work in theatre includes compositions for Hedda Gabler on Broadway; Hamlet and The Nest at the Young Vic; and All About Eve in the West End. In 2013, PJ Harvey was awarded an MBE for services to music. She is the only artist in history to have won the Mercury Music Prize twice. She has authored two books of poetry, The Hollow of the Hand and Orlam.