The film is set in London in the 1960s and opens with wealthy young heiress Polly Dean, Suzy Kendall, stepping out of a grand Chelsea house in a chauffeur-driven Rolls-Royce. The car glides across the Thames toward Battersea Power Station, and Polly alights to walk away as the opening credits roll. She moves from privilege toward a working‑class life, taking a job at the Macrindles confectionery factory in Battersea to earn her own living and prove she can break free from a sheltered upbringing. The factory floor is lively and friendly, but the air carries a smoky, somewhat unhygienic hum as workers sing while they toil, chatting about men and romance in between shifts. There, she meets two sisters, Maureen Lipman Sylvie and Adrienne Posta Rube, who pull her into their close-knit circle. They head to The Pavilion pub after work, charm the local boys, and Polly is invited to join, though she declines a wild motorbike ride and chooses to walk home, keeping her new-found independence intact.
The next day Polly arrives at Clapham Junction with a suitcase, searching for a flat to call her own. The estate agent doubts it will suit her, but Polly signs anyway, determined to make a place in this new life. At the local market she buys a single banana and sits outside a junk shop, savoring a tiny taste of city living. The shop owner’s assistant, Pete, tells her the place isn’t a cafe, and yet when she tells him she needs furniture, the mood shifts to friendliness. She picks up an armchair, a sofa, and even a kitten, and Pete gives her a lift back to the flat, loading her new life into the small space. He asks her on a date, and what begins as a cautious stroll around Battersea grows into a warm, budding romance, punctuated by quiet conversations and easy, spontaneous affection.
Rube becomes pregnant by her boyfriend Terry, and the story intensifies with a grim turn as she undergoes a traumatic illegal abortion performed by a slightly senile old woman named Winnie, Hylda Baker. The secrecy surrounding the pregnancy strains Rube’s family life, and Polly, unable to stay silent, tells Rube’s mother what is happening. Fury explodes when Polly reveals the truth, especially toward Terry, whose presence becomes a source of hostility and fear. The tension sits heavy as Polly’s circle collides with the consequences of these choices, while Terry’s own fate hangs in the balance.
Meanwhile, Pete’s patience frays as he sees the strain between Rube and Sylvie and grows frustrated when Sylvie is attacked by her husband. Tragedy then strikes when Terry is killed in a motorcycle accident, a blow that unsettles Polly’s fragile sense of security and threatens to pull her back into the world she left behind.
Polly and Pete later embark on a seaside weekend in an E‑type Jaguar Pete has rented, and their journey tests more than just their romance. A heated argument exposes a rift: Pete resents Polly’s easy access to a life others can only dream of, and he questions the fairness of her choices in a world where opportunity rarely hands out second chances. The quarrel deepens when Polly’s lifestyle contrasts starkly with his more grounded, working-class reality. The truth about the Jaguar’s theft also surfaces, underscoring how luck and legality intersect in their lives, and the trip ends up underscoring the growing distance between them.
Back in the courtroom, Paige’s world of privilege clashes with the consequences of their actions as Pete is sentenced to six months’ imprisonment. Polly leverages her connections to arrange a final visit, crossing social lines in an attempt to preserve something of their fragile bond. The film closes on a wrenching, human note: Polly stands in the corridor, her eyes brimming with tears as Pete is driven away, leaving behind a vision of a life both chosen and consequences endured.
The story remains intimate and observational, anchored by Polly’s quiet resolve to live honestly while navigating love, loyalty, and the pressure to conform. The film intertwines humor with harsh realities, painting a portrait of a city that both grants and withholds second chances, and it lingers on the emotional cost of choosing one path when so many others lie just out of reach.
