In 1960s Glasgow, young activists Judith and Jimmy fall in love while fighting for a better world. But when their protest is raided and Jimmy is imprisoned, Judith’s life unravels. Pregnant and alone, she’s forced into an unmarried mothers’ home and made to give up her child—a loss that haunts her for decades.
Half a century later, Judith runs a Mending Shop, piecing together broken treasures while quietly tending her own scars. Her hard-won peace shatters when Jimmy reappears, carrying the same memories—and the same regrets. Together, they must face the truth buried beneath years of silence.
Tender, wise, and deeply moving, Anstey Harris’s When I First Held You explores love, loss, and the courage it takes to begin again.
