A retrospective of Merchant Ivory films to celebrate their anniversary, which commemorates events such as a National Film Theatre season. The book provides a full history of the company and the three people who collaborated on its formation and includes interviews with the stars of the films and a glossary of the company's output over three decades. The three founders, Ishmael Merchant, the producer, Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, the screenwriter and James Ivory, the director, have all been interviewed by the author and observed both on and off the set.