After eight years in prison for a crime he didn't commit – the murder of his wife – John Madson has been released and seeks revenge on the policeman that framed him, DI Rourke. He meets Magda, a feisty barrister, willing to help him legally and also gets him a job as an outside clerk in her chambers. As the wheels of justice grind slowly forward, Madson begins to rebuild his life and feels the need to help Magda's other clients, who the law appears to be treating unfairly.

A story of middle-class professional couples who employ full-time live-in nannies to look after their children. The nannies meet up as a collective group, and often discuss their employers' habits in sordid detail. As the plot develops, it becomes clear that most of the nannies are usually stuck in the middle of domestic unsettlement, affairs, neurotic partners, and manipulation.

Jim Reed, a detective, investigates a case of alleged child abuse. But remaining psychologically detached proves difficult. Soon, Jim finds himself questioning his relationships with his father and his two young sons Colin and Tom.