In pre-WW1 England, a youngster is expelled from a naval academy over a petty theft, but his parents raise a political furor by demanding a trial.In Edwardian England, a thirteen year-old cadet, Ronnie Winslow, is expelled from the naval academy at Osborne for stealing a seven shilling postal order. His father and sister become obsessed with proving his innocence at any cost to themselves, and turn the case into a national cause celebre.