Poppy Mazzini, born in Hull over her father's grocery shop, lives up to the promise of her fiery red hair and Italian ancestry. Her lovely singing voice and good looks lead her to her great ambition - to go on the stage and see her name top of the bill. She becomes a music hall star both in her native town and in the south, after an appearance in the theatre at Brighton. But, from a very young age she has been in love with a young man, an ambitious shoemaker in her home town, and when he becomes engaged to someone else Poppy is devastated. She disappears, but her best friend - a composer and pianist who has helped her in her singing career - sends messages and words of love through his music which gradually help her to overcome her misery.