1919. The Great War is over and London lies on the brink of an uncertain future. With the misery and horror of war in the past, hope begins to emerge for the women who have waited at home, as for the first time, they have taken steps towards political, economic and personal independence. But the men who fought and survived the trenches believe the future is theirs by right, and any woman who has celebrated her freedom must now redouble her efforts...

12-year-old Eliza has grown accustomed to a life of penury and servitude, her only comfort - the love and protection of her brother, Bart. One day, Bart accidentally kills a man and is forced to flee to New Zealand. Alone and at the mercy of her cruel uncle, Eliza realises that her very survival is at stake.

In 1920s London, three sisters struggle to make ends meet and protect their mother from the violence of their father.

With her husband, Alan, away on service, Kay is struggling to keep her family together amidst the terror and shortages following the Blitz. So when she sees a shadowy figure watching the house, she is terrified. Kay opens her door to find a woman and a boy standing there. They claim to be Alan's wife and son, and that Alan ran away. Kay is thrown into confusion.

February, 1945: April Green and her cousin Heather are wondering if the war will ever end. Then the local pub in Chiswick takes a direct hit, and April's father is killed in the blast. Volunteering to tend his allotment, she discovers a passion for growing vegetables. Meanwhile, Winnie Benson is coming to terms with her husband's spinal injuries. He may never walk again, and until their son George returns from the merchant navy, Winnie must run their...

Nancy and Terry have suffered terrible abuse at the hands of their father. Finding their way to St Saviour's Children's Home should mean safety. But little Terry is terribly damaged by his experiences, and the carers face challenges they could never have foreseen.

In a Kensington hostel towards the end of World War 2, a group of well-bred, but impecunious young women, are leading lives of ritual femininity. All is well until their interlude of innocence is destroyed by the horror of the times.

Best friends Becky, Bernie and Rose are working hard to establish themselves in 1930s Spitalfields. Becky, the daughter of a Jewish tailor, wants to become a nurse, but her father has more traditional plans for her. Aching to travel the world, Bernie feels trapped by her vast family of poor Irish dock workers. And then there is Rose. Tiny and thin, she lives with her drunken mother and a selection of surrogate fathers who brutalise them both. As Europe...

Returning to England after the war Gilbert Joseph is treated very differently now that he is no longer in an RAF uniform. Joined by his wife Hortense, he rekindles a friendship with Queenie who takes in Jamaican lodgers. Can their dreams of a better life in England overcome the prejudice they face?

In the bleak years after World War I, 15-year-old Lizzie Allen faces desperate times. With her mother dead and her crippled father a broken man, Lizzie is powerless to stop her elder brother Vinnie from falling into debt. Lizzie must draw on all her courage and resourcefulness to keep the family fed and clothed and prevent her two younger sisters from being taken into care. When barrow-boy sweetheart Danny Flowers asks Lizzie to leave for a better...