The Day of the Triffids

In late 20th century Great Britain, a spectacular meteor shower blinds most of the population overnight. Bill Masen, who is in hospital with his eyes bandaged, remains unaware of the catastrophe at first. As the city descends into chaos, the absence of sight leaves people vulnerable and frightened.

Bill tentatively removes his bandages and discovers the scale of the disaster around him. He sees a world suddenly deprived of sight and law, as panic and confusion spread through the hospital and beyond. The collapse of civilization begins to unfold.

Bill rescues Josella 'Jo' Playton from her blind captor and learns she slept through the meteor shower and still retains her sight. They form a bond as they begin to navigate an increasingly dangerous world. This rescue marks the start of their shared journey.

Bill and Jo join a small group of sighted survivors who plan to leave London and establish a new settlement to rebuild civilisation. They aim to shelter the blind and create a safer future beyond the city. This moment shifts the story from mere survival to community-building.

The group is opposed by sighted Jack Coker, who wants them to stay in London and help the blind rather than abandon them. He frames a plan that would keep authority centralized and dependent on the old order. The disagreement sets up a moral conflict that drives later action.

When the group resists, Jack and a few supporters capture several members, including Bill and Jo. Bill is handcuffed to two of his charges to prevent him from leaving them. The incident strains the fragile alliance and escalates tensions.

The triffids break loose and roam through the blind population, slaughtering and feeding on them. The survivors scramble to stay alive as the plants spread and chaos deepens. The world grows deadlier as both disease and predators devastate communities.

Bill and Jack drive through the countryside and encounter a faction that left London. They discover a split in morality: Miss Durrant's group resists polygamy as a means to repopulate. The division shapes the path of the survivors as they search for safety.

Bill meets a young sighted girl, Susan, who becomes a companion on the road. She joins their efforts to stay alive and navigate the new world.

Bill recalls Jo's mention of a place in the Sussex Downs and is eventually reunited with her there. They establish a safe farm, erect a protective fence to keep out the triffids, and begin raising a family.

Six years pass and Jack arrives in a helicopter. Miss Durrant's group has been wiped out by disease, while the other faction has secured the Isle of Wight and destroyed the local triffids there. The survivors face a shifting balance of control as they search for safety.

Uniformed men arrive in an armoured car, proposing a feudal society with sighted aristocracy and plans to assign more blind to Bill and Jo. They take Susan away to learn how to care for others. Bill gets the soldiers drunk and sabotages their vehicle, and the group drives away, leaving the gates open for the approaching triffids.