Flame-haired Wimbledon girl Joan Harvey could not have chosen a worse time to fall in love with Matt Pearson. With no end in sight to the Second World War, and Joan discovering she is pregnant, a rushed marriage is her only option, despite her family's reservations. Then, on a visit to Matt's family in the East End, a street accident results in Joan going into premature labour. As her baby is born, a bomb plunges the hospital into darkness, before Joan has even had a chance to look at her son.