One pleasant May evening, Pop and Ma Larkin and their six children—sated on fish, chips and ice cream— return to the rustic charms of their Kent farm. Waiting for them is a young man: Mr Cedric Charlton, an upstanding inspector of taxes, come to discover why they haven't paid any. Yet as junk-dealer Pop patiently explains: nothing's ever that simple at the Larkins'. Mariette takes a shine to 'Charley'—as Pop calls him—and before long the family have introduced the uncomplaining inspector to the delights of country living: the lusty scents of wild flowers, the pleasures of a bottle of Dragon's Blood, cold cream dribbled over a bowl of strawberries and the sweet song of nightingales. Will Cedric come to his senses? Or will he beat a hasty retreat to the office?