Growing up in the 1890s in the crushing poverty of Sunderland's squalid East End, Josie Burns is no stranger to cold and hunger; Josie and her brothers and sisters are sent out to beg as soon as they can walk. But Josie has a beautiful voice, and from the age of seven she earns enough singing in pubs for her father to leave her and her younger sister alone. Until he decides little Gertie is old enough to work the streets. Then Josie takes her sister and flees to Newcastle, where she starts a new life in the music halls. With popularity and wealth come heartache, and there are many obstacles to overcome, but Josie is learning to fight for what she believes in...