August 1940: As the Luftwaffe swarm over Liverpool, Shane Quinn decides to move his family back to the safety of Ireland. But his only child, the beautiful Dana, would rather stay and serve her country than flee to a foreign land. Determined to make it on her own, she joins the WAAF with newfound pals Patty and Lucy. There’s plenty of excitement to be had on a RAF station, even a chance or two at love.

 1936. Polly's guardian angel has to work overtime when her large family is forced to move from the countryside they love into central Liverpool. Money is desperately short, and with her mother working and her father sick, Polly is easily led astray by the handsome Sunny Andersen. But soon war looms, and Sunny joins the navy to train as a signaller. After the horrors of the May Blitz, Polly, too, decides she wants to help her country and goes into the WRNs. She hears that an old pal, Tad Donoghue from the Dublin slums, is now in the Royal Air Force.

Liverpool, 1917. When Irish seaman Michael Gallagher docks in Liverpool after years of fighting with the British Navy, he never expects to fall in love. But the moment he glimpses Stella Bennett, all thoughts of returning to his homeland vanish. Determined to be together, the young couple defy Stella’s parents’ wishes. But their plans to marry are soon derailed by the arrival of baby Ginny. Her crop of fiery red hair plants a seed of doubt in her father’s mind, and it’s not long before their world begins to fall apart.

Liverpool, 1940. When war comes to Britain, Jessica Wilson and her friend Ruby seize the opportunity to leave behind the orphanage they grew up in and start new lives in the NAAFI. With only forged papers as identification, the girls expect to be turned away but are delighted with an offer of work. For the first time in their lives they experience real independence, and it isn't long before they're spending their evenings enjoying the delights of Liverpool.

Dympna Byrne lives a simple life with her family on the Connemara coast. She adores her father Micheál, and does her best to help her family by working hard and expecting little. But beneath the surface there are hidden secrets. Dympna’s mother idolises her clever eldest son, yet her attitude to Dympna is puzzling. So when her family find themselves in desperate need of money, it is Dympna who crosses the water to Liverpool to seek a better life. 

Liverpool, 1935. Kathy Kelling is coming home to Daisy Street from her first day at the High School, longing to tell her friend, Jane, all about it. The Kellings' life becomes a struggle when Kathy’s brother, Billy, has a serious accident. He needs constant attention, and Mrs Kelling must take in lodgers so that Kathy’s schooling does not suffer. When war breaks out, Kathy and Jane are forced to grow up fast. Kathy meets the handsome Alec Hewitt, but he is more attracted to blonde, bubbly Jane. But Fate has not yet finished with Kathy Kelling.... 

Lavender Road boasts a pawnbroker, a pub, two rows of terraced working class homes and, at one end, the big house owned by the local brewer. When war breaks out, the lives and fortunes of the families who live in Lavender Road are changed out of all recognition. For Joyce, it means a struggle to keep food on the family table; for Jen it may mean the end of her dream to become an actress; and for Pam, there is the sickening seesaw of emotions as she fights attraction to her handsome lodger and a growing distance from a husband who is judged not fit to enlist.

It is a cold December night and Sylvie Dugdale is weeping as she walks by the Mersey. She fails to notice an approaching figure, and jumping to one side to avoid collision, she finds herself struggling in the ice-cold river. Constable Brendan O'Hara, just coming off duty, sees the girl's plight and dives in to rescue her. He is dazzled by her beauty but discovers that Sylvie's husband is in prison, and the closeness that Brendan soon longs for is impossible. But he is able to help her escape from Liverpool....

Emmy Dickens lives with her widowed mother in a neat house in neglected Nightingale Court, but Mrs Dickens has always impressed upon her daughter that her main aim in life must be to escape from the court. Emmy sees that marriage is her best way out, and when Peter Wesley, First Officer aboard a cruise ship, asks her to marry him, she is over the moon. Life goes well for the newlyweds; they set up home and start a family. But when Peter is killed and Emmy is left almost penniless, her problems begin.... 

At the heart of Dover's Market Square lies the Castle's Café. A bustling, homely place run by the formidable Nellie Castle and her six children. Since the scandalous birth of her beloved son 10 years before, Marianne, Nellie's eldest daughter, has preferred to stay in the kitchen, hidden away from the town gossips. Overcome with shame, Marianne has never revealed the name of Donny's father - not even to her own mother. But with World War II just around the corner, Marianne's past catches up with her. And suddenly the lives of the Castle family become a lot more complicated.

Laura Cannock is on the run. Suspected of killing her bullying husband, his family are on a merciless prowl for revenge. Fleeing from her beloved home of Bolton to Manchester, Laura seeks refuge with her coal merchant uncle. But it soon becomes clear that a roof over her head comes with a price - of the type so unbearable she must escape once more. Destitute and penniless, a stench-ridden housing court in the back streets of the factories is Laura’s only hope of a dwelling - a place where both the filth and the kindness of neighbours overwhelm.

When the Todds move into a flat on the Scotland Road, they are strangers to city life: their previous home was a canal barge. Harry gets a job as warehouse manager and his wife, Martha, works in a grocer’s shop whilst Seraphina trains as a teacher, Angela works in Bunney’s Department Store and young Evie starts at regular school. Then circumstances change, and Seraphina takes a job in Lyon’s Corner House. Customers vie for her favours, including an old friend, Toby.... 

Seventeen-year-old Liza is happy working as a lady's maid - until her employers decide to emigrate and her father makes up his mind that she is to wed an older widower whom she detests. Determined to avoid a loveless marriage, Liza plans to run away. But when the widower rapes her to force her to marry him, she flees back to the family for whom she worked. She feels she has no choice but to go with them to Australia, and they all set out on the long voyage. On board ship, Liza discovers to her horror that she has fallen pregnant. 

1901. Tina Rose is the beloved daughter of a wealthy Jewish family while Edward grew up with an abusive father in the wilds of New Zealand. Despite their differences, the two fall madly in love when Edward arrives in England, looking for a better future. However, the consequences of their love affair are terrible for Tina, as she is shamed by the father she adores, and Edward is sent away. Against all the odds, Tina and Edward find each other again.

Hull, 1940. Widowed Edie Copeland has just arrived on Exchange Street, heavily pregnant and with heavy suitcase in tow. She left York after tragedy struck to make a fresh start, but she's a stranger to this street, and her new landlord doesn't hesitate to remind her of this, widow or not. Luckily, the neighbours are a little more welcoming and Edie is soon made to feel at home by the Maguires and the Scuttles. As air raids sound and the war feels closer than ever, the community has to stick together. But Edie is hiding something, and she doesn't know how much longer her secret is safe.