Before I Was An Orphan tells the true story of local journalist Alex Kane. Despite not speaking a word until he was adopted from an orphanage at six years old, he now ironically makes his living as a political pundit and commentator. Alex has no memory of life prior to moving in with his adoptive mum Adelaide and her husband Sam, but suffers night terrors to this day about opening a door back into his childhood. His earliest memory is of a teddy bear given to him as a present by Adelaide and Sam, a bear that would transform his sense of trust and help sooth his trauma. Now a father himself, he is grappling with the decision as to whether or not he should open his social services file, which could reveal the truth about what happened to him before he was adopted. While he weighs up the decision, Alex visits the Public Record Office Of Northern Ireland to view information about the orphanage that he has no memory of - and as he sets off towards Portadown to discover if the orphanage still exists, he wonders what memories might come flooding back.