A young woman is hired as a maid to an heiress who lives a secluded life on a large countryside estate with her domineering uncle. But, the maid has a secret: she is a pickpocket recruited by a swindler posing as a gentleman to help him seduce the heiress to elope with him, rob her of her fortune, and lock her up in a madhouse. The plan seems to proceed according to plan until the women discover some unexpected emotions.

Sally Hawkins, Elaine Cassidy, Rupert Evans, Charles Dance, Imelda Staunton, Polly Hemingway, David Troughton, Sarah Badel, Bronson Webb, Richard Durden, Michelle Dockery