In 1890's brighton the young son of a puritanical chemist longs to escape the repressive environment of his family life and the overbearing restraints of his cruel, pious father. Eventually finding refuge in a local tavern he is immediately attracted to the sordid glamour of the drinking classes and the gritty world that they inhabit. He also finds himself becoming infatuated with the tavern's landlady, which will inadvertently lead to him being drawn into a plot to kill her abusive husband. Directed by robert hamer kind hearts and coronets, school for scoundrels, pink string and sealing wax stars googie withers the lady vanishes, mervyn johns dead of night and gordon jackson whisky galore, the quatermass experiment in a film that cleverly entwines the dynamics of a thriller with biting social commentary and a multi layered plot structure that contrasts the parallels of the british class system.