Aston (played by Robert Shaw) is a quiet and reserved man who lives alone in a messy room on the top floor of an abandoned small house in a poor area of London. He befriended Mac Davies (played by Donald Pleasons), an old homeless man who was fired from a humble job in a caf é. Aston promptly provided him with a job as a house manager. Aston's brother Mick (played by Alan Bates) is a mocking quasi sadist who, when his brother is not around, harasses abandoned people and disobeys his commands. In the end, Aston was angered by the irascible old man and kicked him out.