Ornithologist Professor Inigo Tinkle offers a dry, amused account of his latest expedition to Africa in search of the mythical Oozlum bird, a creature said to fly in ever-decreasing circles until it disappears up its own rear end. The venture is financed by Lady Evelyn Bagley, Joan Sims, and steered by the notoriously lecherous Bill Boosey, Sid James, with a tough African guide named Upsidaisi and his handler, Bernard Bresslaw. Completing the team are Tinkle’s assistant, Claude Chumley, and June, Lady Bagley’s maidservant, Jacki Piper.
The journey quickly takes a wild turn when a gorilla stalks the campsite, signaling that the travelers have wandered into Nosha territory, a tribe reputed for their cannibal ways. On the first night, Lady Bagley reveals her true motive: she is searching for her long-lost husband Walter and their baby Cecil, who vanished two decades earlier while they were on their honeymoon. She hopes Cecil’s lost nappy pin might still serve as a clue. Watching from the brush, Ug, a white jungle dweller, observes their movements. The next day, June discovers an oasis and rescues Ug from drowning, and the two soon fall in love.
That night, Ug slips into Lady Bagley’s tent by mistake—believing it to be June’s—and she is stunned to see that Ug wears Cecil’s nappy pin. Ug, who turns out to be Cecil, bolts in fright, leaving Lady Bagley faint with shock. The following day, the travelers are captured by the Noshas. In a bid to rescue them, Ug accidentally catapults himself into the Nosha camp, starting a fire that creates chaos. Amid the turmoil, Ug, June, and Upsidaisi manage to escape, but the other travelers are seized and condemned to death.
Just when all hope seems lost, they are rescued by the Lubby-Dubby tribe, an all-female group led by Leda, a formidable ruler from Aphrodisia. They take the survivors to Aphrodisia to meet Tonka the Great, who turns out to be Walter Bagley, the very man Lady Bagley had hoped to reunite with after all these years. Evelyn Bagley is furious that Walter never searched for Cecil and laments her discovery of him only to lose him again to Aphrodisia. June and Ug, meanwhile, are building a life together; she teaches him to speak English, and their bond strengthens.
Back in Aphrodisia, Bill Boosey, Tinkle, and Claude bask in the attention from the Lubby-Dubbies’ women, while the discovery that the Oozlum bird is revered as a sacred creature among the Lubby-Dubbies complicates the men’s fantasy. The Lubby-Dubbies face a grave problem: no males have been born in Aphrodisia for over a century, and they fear extinction unless the men stay. The men initially view this as a dream come true, but Tonka hints that the last man who tried to escape Aphrodisia was killed.
Lady Bagley grows resentful of the male company’s privilege and, pushed by circumstance, ensures the men are paired with Aphrodisian women who are far from glamorous. After three grim months, the men’ patience tires, while Leda grows angrier that pregnancy hasn’t occurred. She finally overturns Tonka’s rule, threatening doom to the men. Upsidasi arrives in disguise, claiming to bring soldiers to free them. Ug and June search for their friends; Ug summons a stampede of animals to sow chaos and create an opening for escape. In the commotion, Tinkle snatches the Oozlum bird, and the group escapes with Tonka in tow. The Lubby-Dubbies pursue, but their interest shifts from justice to the spectacle of the “real men” they have.
Lady Bagley is reunited with Ug, and the party returns to England. Back on stage, Tinkle reveals the Oozlum bird to his audience, only to find it has seemingly vanished up inside itself. June and Ug settle into a happy life together, with a baby of their own, in a treehouse dwelling in the English suburbs, while Ug goes to work in a bowler hat, suit, and no shoes. The misfit expedition ends on a note of odd romance, cheeky adventure, and a final, baffling aside about the elusive Oozlum.
