Glenda Jackson, Brian Deacon and Oliver Reed star in this romantic drama set in England during WWII. Alice (Jackson) lives alone on her rural farm after her husband's incarceration in a Japanese POW camp. The arrival of Barton (Deacon), a deserting soldier, prompts a relationship to develop between the pair and in order to prevent detection from the military police roaming the countryside for deserters Alice helps Barton to disguise himself as a woman. However, when a sergeant (Reed) pays them a visit and takes a liking to Barton, completely unaware of the transformation, his coarse advances lead to tragic consequences.