Soames and Irene Forsyte have a marriage of convenience. The Forsytes and the people and society around them is the basis for this love story set in the rigid and strict times of the Victorian age.

Don Gregor, the son of famous plastic surgeon Dr. Boris Gregor, begins to hang around with young criminal Vic Brady and carry a gun. The pair attempt an armed holdup, and when things start to go wrong Gregor accidentally kills a night watchman. Fearing that Gregor plans to turn himself in, Brady kills him and blackmails Dr. Gregor into giving him a new face.