On Christmas Eve, Ebenezer Scrooge Alastair Sim tells two businessmen that he has no intention of celebrating Christmas. He refuses to donate to two men collecting for the poor. His nephew, Fred Brian Worth invites him to dinner the next day, but Scrooge refuses, disparaging Fred for having married. Scrooge reluctantly gives his clerk Bob Cratchit Mervyn Johns Christmas Day off since there will be no business for Scrooge then, but Scrooge expects Cratchit back earlier the following day.
Scrooge returns home and is visited by the ghost of his seven-years-dead partner, Jacob Marley Michael Hordern. Marley’s ghost warns Scrooge that he must change his ways, or after death forever walk the earth bound in chains, as Marley does. Marley says Scrooge will be visited by three spirits, the first to arrive at one o'clock that night. Frightened, Scrooge takes refuge in his bed.
The Ghost of Christmas Past Michael Dolan arrives. Scrooge is shown himself alone at school, unwanted by his father after his mother died in childbirth. His beloved sister Fan Carol Marsh arrives to take him home, telling Ebenezer that their father has had a change of heart toward him. The Spirit shows Scrooge the annual Christmas party thrown by his former benevolent employer, S. Fezziwig Roddy Hughes. Scrooge watches his younger self propose to his sweetheart Alice Rona Anderson, who accepts. He is then shown how he is tempted to leave Fezziwig's to join a business run by Mr. Jorkin Jack Warner.
Scrooge witnesses the death of Fan after she gives birth to Fred, and discovers he missed her last words asking him to look after her son. Scrooge's younger self joins Jorkin and meets Jacob Marley. Jorkin's firm buys Fezziwig's business, and Alice breaks her engagement to Scrooge because of his dedication to "a golden idol." When Jorkin is found to have embezzled funds from the now bankrupt company, Scrooge and Marley make good the missing funds, on condition they can control the company. One Christmas Eve, Scrooge refuses to leave work to visit a dying Marley. When Scrooge finally arrives, Marley, knowing he will be punished for his misdeeds, tries to warn Scrooge against his avarice. The Spirit reproaches Scrooge for taking Marley's money and house, as an ashamed Scrooge finds himself back in his bed.
The Ghost of Christmas Present Francis de Wolff arrives. He takes Scrooge to see how “men of goodwill” celebrate Christmas. The spirit shows Scrooge poor miners joyfully singing Christmas carols and the Cratchits' celebration on Christmas Day. Scrooge asks whether their ailing young son, Tiny Tim Glyn Dearman, will survive his physical disabilities. The Spirit hints that he will not unless the future is changed. Scrooge and the spirit then visit Fred's Christmas party, where Fred defends Scrooge from his guests' critical remarks.
An older Alice is working in a poorhouse, where she ministers to the sick and homeless. The Spirit shows Scrooge two emaciated children, personifying Ignorance and Want. When Scrooge shows concern for their welfare, the Spirit mocks him and scourges the miser with his own words: "Are there no prisons? Are there no workhouses?"
Finally, Scrooge encounters the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come Czeslaw Konarski, who shows him the Cratchits mourning Tiny Tim's death. Three people, including his charwoman Mrs. Dilber Kathleen Harrison, sell off the possessions of a dead man, and two businessmen joke they will only attend the man's funeral if lunch is provided. When shown a gravestone bearing his own name, Scrooge begs the Spirit for a second chance; he then awakens in his bed.
Scrooge learns that it is Christmas Day, and gleefully realises he still has an opportunity to make amends. Though Mrs. Dilber is initially frightened by his transformation, Scrooge reassures her and promises to raise her salary. He anonymously purchases a prize turkey for the Cratchits and sends it to them. He delights Fred by attending his dinner party, asking his niece-in-law's forgiveness and dancing with her. The next day, Scrooge plays a prank on Bob Cratchit and pretends to be about to fire him for lateness, but instead says he will raise Bob's salary and assist his family. Scrooge embodies the Christmas spirit and becomes a second father to Tiny Tim, who recovers.
