Cluny Brown

Cluny Brown fixes a plumbing issue at Mr. Ames's and meets Adam Belinski. They instantly strike a chord, hinting at a budding connection. This chance encounter sets the story in motion.

At a party, Betty Cream is pursued by two young men. Cream stumbles upon a sleeping Belinski, who is recognized as a prominent anti-Nazi author and professor. Andrew Carmel offers Belinski a place to stay at the Carmels' outside London, setting up his lodgings.

Brown's guardian disapproves of her unladylike behavior and sends her to work as the parlor maid for Andrew Carmel's family. She arrives under the watchful eyes of housekeeper Mrs. Maile and butler Mr. Syrette, bristling with disapproval.

At dinner Belinski is shown to a room with a nightingale, and later he confronts Brown. They realize they are out of place in the Carmels' world and decide to remain platonic friends, even though Belinski is clearly attracted to her.

Brown learns she has been invited by chemist Jonathan Wilson to meet his mother. Belinski rings Wilson's doorbell and disappears, and later they meet again, with Belinski asserting that Wilson would be a good match for Brown.

That evening, Belinski tries to discourage Brown by comparing Wilson to a freighter in a quiet harbor. The metaphor backfires, and Brown finds Wilson more attractive despite the comparison.

Andrew has a feud with Cream in London, but Cream appears as a guest at the Carmels' the next day. Belinski persuades Cream to let Brown attend Mrs. Wilson's birthday party, where Wilson may announce an engagement.

During the Wilsons' birthday party, a plumbing problem erupts. Brown uses her plumbing skills to fix the pipe with a wrench, loudly banging until the issue is resolved. The guests are startled, Mrs. Wilson disapproves, and Mr. Wilson questions his engagement.

That night Belinski visits Cream's room and asks her to be nicer to Andrew, but Cream threatens to scream if he doesn't leave. Lady Carmel calms the tension by telling her to go to bed, and Andrew's anger subsides under her guidance.

The next morning, Lady Carmel advises Cream to marry Andrew, and Cream agrees to tell him. Andrew plans to confront Brown with a fight, but Belinski's charm defuses the conflict, and all ends peacefully.

Since the birthday party, Brown has been ill in bed while Belinski announces his departure. He asks Mrs. Maile to give Brown his parting gift and rushes Brown to the train station. She learns Wilson will ask his mother for another chance, and Belinski escorts her onto the train, professing his love and vowing to support them with a best‑selling murder mystery.

In the window of the Fifth Avenue Bookstore, copies of Belinski's novels are displayed as Brown and Belinski pass by. They share a long kiss, a crowd gathers, and Brown, after a swoon, is taken away by a cab, implying she is pregnant.