Sadie Shimmin

It is January 1936 and diplomat Sir Hallam and Lady Agnes Holland move into 165 Eaton Place, closely followed by his widowed mother and her wayward sister. But they also need a full serving staff, for which Lady Agnes turns to an agency run by none other than Rose Buck, who used to work at the house. But the arrival of an unwelcome guest puts a strain on relations both, upstairs and downstairs.

William Shawcross' search for love stops when he sees Mary Gilcrest. But their first date is a disaster, and it's not helped when, at the worst possible time, she discovers he's an undertaker.

William fears things with Mary are ruined, but she's preoccupied with a truant teenager and her meddling mother, Molly, who's got "fix up" plans of her own.