Green Dolphin Street

In 1840s Guernsey, the clipper Green Dolphin reaches San Pierre and Captain O'Hara extols the wonders of New Zealand. Timothy Haslam is caught as a stowaway who killed his brother-in-law, and Captain O'Hara agrees to smuggle him to the colony. The islanders hear rumors of a fresh start across the sea, setting the stage for the ensuing schemes.

Marianne engineers for Octavius Patourel to sponsor William as a naval officer, aligning his fate with the Green Dolphin's voyage to New Zealand. Captain O'Hara, impressed by Marianne's plan, agrees to help smuggle Timothy to the colony as part of the broader setup. The groundwork for a cross-Pacific life is laid.

After a two-year time jump, William returns to San Pierre for a day and secretly declares his love for Marguerite. His father Edmond Ozanne dies suddenly, adding urgency to the choices facing the sisters. The moment redefines loyalties among the family.

William travels to China to visit Marguerite, but is drugged and robbed and misses his ship. Fortuitously, he finds Captain O'Hara's Green Dolphin in a Chinese port and sneaks aboard, making his way to New Zealand to stay out of reach of the law. The journey shifts his fate toward a new home across the sea.

In New Zealand, William makes a living as a lumberman and briefly works as a schoolteacher. Captain O'Hara locates him, but William chooses to travel into the back-country with Timothy instead of staying at the port. His improvisation and independence set the pattern of his later life.

William, while intoxicated, writes a proposal to Marianne. Sophie reads the note aloud, triggering joy for Marianne and heartbreak for Marguerite back home. Marianne resolves to go to New Zealand to be with William, defying her father.

As Marianne approaches New Zealand, Captain O'Hara warns that William's note may reflect a drunken mistake. Marianne proclaims her love for him and proceeds, but Timothy strong-arms William into marrying her. Marianne soon becomes pregnant, cementing their alliance.

Sophie dies on her deathbed, revealing that her own marriage was forced but that she grew to love Octavius. Octavius explains he always knew but loved her anyway and supported William because of Sophie’s love for his father. Sophie tells Marguerite to apply the advice to her own life, and Marguerite learns from a letter that Marianne is pregnant.

Despondent, Marguerite escapes to the tidal flats and later to a convent after Sophie’s death, where nuns show her pity and help her find purpose. The quiet refuge becomes a turning point as she confronts her tangled loves. The world outside continues to churn with Mariannes, William, and their family.

A massive earthquake devastates a Maori village and logging camp, followed by a tsunami that floods the river barge William is on. Captain O'Hara dies trying to help, and Marianne and William eventually reconcile after the disaster, naming their daughter Veronica. The disaster reshapes their lives and bonds.

Years later, Maori and colonial forces clash, forcing Marianne and William to defend their village with a stockade against Timothy's advice. The family is captured during hostilities, Timothy returns to negotiate their release, and their timber business is ruined. Marianne resolves to move to the South Island with Veronica.

Several years later, Marianne and William prosper in Dunedin with a thriving timber and steam-shipping enterprise. Marianne longs to return to San Pierre and run the family business from there, seeking a second life at home. William remains their partner but keeps ties to their origins.

Marianne secures a pardon for William’s desertion so they can return to San Pierre and rejoin the family business. They plan to move their operations back to their homeland and settle once again by the sea. The reunion marks a full-circle shift from colonization to homecoming.

On their return to San Pierre, Marianne confronts William with the China letter confessing his early love for Marguerite. William admits his drunken mistake and that Timothy knew; Marguerite returns home and, on the day she is to take vows, explains she is happy as a nun and no longer loves William. William confesses he now loves Marianne more deeply, and Marguerite completes her vow to become a nun.