Spring and Port Wine

Rafe Crompton works in a weaving mill and takes pride in supporting his family despite their modest means. He lives in a garden city-style council house and relies on Daisy and Florence to keep the budget in order. The family is close-knit, but money is tight.

Daisy feels forced to lend money to a neighbour to save a hire-purchase TV from repossession. She initially refuses the loan, which enrages Mrs Duckworth who accuses Rafe of micromanaging the housekeeping.

To cover the emergency, Daisy borrows money from her son when he comes home and uses it to pay Mrs Duckworth. The act underscores the precarious finances of the household and the pressure Daisy faces.

During the Friday tea, the Cromptons recall the economic Depression and its toll on ordinary families. Hilda refuses the herring, and Rafe insists she will eat it every day until she does, a stubborn control that foreshadows later tensions. The moment sets the stage for the family’s fragile equilibrium.

Harold and Wilfred receive a box containing a fine overcoat and a receipt for 40 guineas, signaling money worries and unexpected obligations. The gift unsettles the family as they wonder about the money’s origin and meaning.

Mr Crompton leads the family in a round of hymns around the piano, reinforcing shared values despite looming hardship. The scene juxtaposes religious routine with mounting financial strain.

The herring disappears and is found outside being eaten by the cat. Mr Crompton suspects the cat didn’t take it and makes Wilfred swear he didn’t move it; Wilfred faints under the pressure.

Florence leaves to live with her fiancé Arthur, while Hilda goes to stay with the Duckworths. These departures feel like a step down rather than an advancement in their circumstances.

Back at the Duckworths, Mr Duckworth sits in a filthy vest and makes demands, while his daughter eats a banana wrapped in bread. It seems Hilda is pregnant, and Mrs Crompton pawns the newly acquired overcoat to help; she shows Hilda how to break into the bureau to access cash.

A chance incident spurs Mrs Crompton to try to retrieve the coat from pawn. Rafe notices his raincoat is missing a button and, urged by his sons, discovers the expensive overcoat is now in pawn.

Realising she is about to be caught, Mrs Crompton runs out into the rain and Rafe chases after. He finds her staring into the canal, contemplating suicide, and explains that his thrift comes from childhood trauma; he vows to protect her.

Meanwhile, the Cromptons' boys start packing and preparing to leave, signaling that the family’s fracture might widen. The sense of impending breakdown weighs on the household.

Walking home together, Rafe and Daisy begin to reframe the crisis as a chance for reconciliation. He acknowledges Hilda’s pregnancy and, offering love and protection, gives her the key to the bureau and the cashbox.

Florence agrees to stay until she marries, and the family asks Hilda to stay as well. The brothers decide to stay too, choosing unity over leaving and signaling a hopeful, if fragile, reconciliation.

In the final scene, Mr Crompton plays the piano while Hilda sings a hymn and the family gathers around in the living room. They are reunited, facing hardship together with renewed resolve.