In 1970, Emma Harte [Deborah Kerr] is a formidable, self-made business titan whose empire spans Harte's Department Store in London, as well as vast holdings in property and oil. On a business trip she tells her granddaughter, Paula McGill Amory [Miranda Richardson], that she will be her successor, a declaration that will set off decades of ambition, loyalty, and feuds within the family.
Back in London, Emma learns that her two sons, Kit and Robin, are scheming to force her into retirement and dissolve the very enterprises she built. In response, she rewrites her will, removing any lingering doubt about who controls the family fortune, and makes a stark decision to pass the wealth instead to her grandchildren.
The tale then jumps to the early 20th century, following teenaged Emma as she leaves the world of servitude at Fairley Hall in rural Yorkshire. The young Emma, who shares a cramped, hardworking life with her father Jack and brothers Winston and Frank in a family that owns mills and a brickyard, becomes entangled with Edwin Fairley, the Fairleys’ younger son. After Emma becomes pregnant, Edwin refuses to marry her, and Shane “Blackie” O’Neill [Liam Neeson], an Irish navvy who works at Fairley Hall, suggests she start anew. Emma relocates, inventing a new life for herself and telling landlady and friends that she is married to a sailor at sea.
Her fortunes begin to shift when Abraham Kallinski rescues her from an anti-Semitic mob and introduces her to his wife Janessa and their sons, David and Victor. Emma finds a job in their textile factory, while Blackie helps her connect with Laura O’Neill [Diane Baker], who welcomes Emma into her home and helps her establish a foothold at Thompson’s Mill. Emma gives birth to Edwina, and, after a time, Freda briefly takes the baby, but Emma regains control and, driven by ambition, rents a shop in Armley where she sells fabrics, clothing, and luxury foods. The business thrives and expands to multiple stores, turning Emma into a shrewd, uncompromising entrepreneur.
Trouble arises when Edwin Fairley’s brother Gerald arrives, forcing Emma to confront threats to her daughter and her future. After a violent confrontation, she marries her landlord, Joe Lowther [Jonathan Duttine], for protection, and the couple have a son, Kit. Emma then goes into a productive partnership with the Kallinskis, while her private life remains turbulent—she endures tragedy when Joe is killed in the Battle of the Somme, and Laura, now married to Blackie, dies in childbirth, leaving Emma to take in Bryan.
In 1918 Emma falls in love with Australian Army officer Paul McGill [Barry Bostwick], who is wounded in battle and later returns to his estranged wife. Emma seeks solace in a relationship with Arthur Ainsley, marrying him and bearing twins, Robin and Elizabeth, before Paul returns and complicates everything. Emma and Paul’s bond deepens, and Emma ultimately bears Daisy—the daughter who will loom large in the family’s destiny. The Fairleys’ bitterness lingers, but Emma’s growing power allows her to acquire their holdings, including Fairley Hall, with plans to demolish it for a public park and to claim a symbolic victory over those who doubted her.
As the 1930s approach, Paul travels to Australia to request a divorce and is nearly killed in a car crash; he survives but dies within a year, leaving Emma and Daisy a substantial stake in Sitex oil. Emma’s empire endures the blows of war and fortune alike, and her children go on to marry and to start their own lineages—Edwina, Kit, and Robin each have offspring; Elizabeth marries several times and has four children, while Daisy has two, including Paula.
Returning to the 1970 birthday gathering, Emma invites the entire clan to her Yorkshire estate and delivers a shocking revelation: she has rewritten her will once again, disinheriting her children for deceit and awarding everything to her grandchildren. Paula is named to inherit the Harte’s Department Store empire, a move that sparks anger and grudging acceptance among Emma’s offspring, who sign agreements not to contest the will. Emma also blesses Paula’s engagement to Jim Fairley, Edwin’s grandson, signaling a dramatic closure to Emma’s lifelong feud with the Fairley side and setting a new course for the family’s future.
