Life in 1920s Belfast is hard for the working class people, but the McGuigans are more fortunate than most. But when eldest son Johnnie shatters the family's peaceful existence with a shocking and unwelcome revelation, opinions become divided. And there are secrets in other quarters, too, when sister Louise discovers her boyfriend is hiding something - a secret so terrible it threatens their engagement. The once close-knit family are forced to make a series of painful decisions that will change all their lives for ever.