The Kettlewells are a dysfunctional family. Richard is a charming old Etonian whose business ventures are failing. Over a crowded weekend, his daughter Pamela, whom he hardly knows, returns from Russia, a passionate communist; his ex-wife and mistress both unexpectedly arrive; and his butler has a big win at the races.

The Roundabout is a funny, touching, highly perceptive look at an England in the 1930s, when it seemed, just possibly, as if the social order might be changing.