Hell Drivers

Having returned from time abroad, Tom seeks work with Hawletts. He hopes to prove himself on the road and earn a place among the haulage drivers. This marks the beginning of his struggle to fit in with a harsh, competitive team.

Tom goes on a trial run with the depot mechanic in truck 13. He demonstrates steady nerves and quick reflexes by avoiding collisions with two speeding Hawletts trucks coming from the opposite direction. Impressed, Cartley hires him to drive for Hawletts.

Tom meets Red, the foreman and top driver, and Gino, the Italian who loves Lucy. The men lodge together, and Red publicly ups the ante by offering a £250 gold cigarette case to anyone who beats his daily number of runs. Tom steels himself to win fairly.

The drivers attend a dance at a hall where tensions erupt into a fight. Police are called and Tom flees the scene, earning Red's label of coward. From then on, the other drivers bully Tom, hindering his runs and calling him 'yellow belly'.

Tom visits his brother Jimmy and their mother in the tobacconist's shop. His mother refuses money, blaming Tom for Jimmy's crippling injury and reliance on crutches. The scene underscores the personal cost of Tom's pursuit of respect.

When pay packets arrive, Tom realises he has been underpaid due to bullying by the other drivers. Red reveals the wages were docked to cover equipment damage, lifting a veneer of justification. A fistfight erupts, and Tom beats Red.

Gino volunteers to switch truck numbers with Tom so the others unknowingly harass Gino and help Tom win the cigarette case. The plan relies on a harmless swap that could throw their rivals off Tom's scent.

That night Lucy breaks up with Gino, and Tom confesses that he has not been abroad but spent a year in prison. Lucy drops him at the drivers' digs, unaware that Gino has seen them from a window.

The next day Tom buys a one-way train ticket to London. Lucy rushes in to tell him that Gino has been injured in a crash, and they rush to the hospital. A doctor reveals that Gino is dying, and that he swapped the truck numbers as planned to help Tom win; the couple learn of the scam Cartley and Red have been running.

Tom returns to the depot to confront Cartley about Gino's death and the payroll scam. Cartley offers him a share of the stolen money and Red's old truck 1 position, which Tom reluctantly accepts in order to pursue justice.

Red and Cartley lie in wait along the shortcut, hoping Tom will take the dangerous route. Tom arrives in truck 13 loaded with ballast and is sideswiped by Red, forced toward the quarry and knocked unconscious.

Red's truck veers off the road and both it and Cartley's vehicle plunge into the quarry; Red dies when his brakes fail. Tom awakens, frees himself from the wreck, and escapes as his own truck teeters near the edge. Lucy arrives in a jeep to find him.

Tom survives the perilous finale and is reunited with Lucy. The truth about the scam and the death of Gino slowly comes to light as they move forward, seeking a new path beyond the hazardous world of the haulage drivers.