Painter and decorator JJ has never got over losing his first wife Claire and their son Kieran to a drink-drive accident. It nearly destroyed him, but thanks to their teenage daughter Abbie, and JJ's second wife Lisa, he's managed to keep going. One evening, a discovery turns his world upside down - a pile of love letters to Lisa, from 'T', going back years.
Valerie has never had much confidence in her abilities, always finding reading and writing difficult. So when she's accepted for an interview at a pharmacy she can't believe her luck.
Manual worker Sam,despite having no formal qualifications,successfully gets a job as a teacher through his persuasive interview but,whilst celebrating,falls down and bangs his head. After waking in hospital he finds he has lost the power of literacy but,anxious to get the job,gets girlfriend Naomi to help him begin to learn to read again. Paranoid that people will find out his secret he lashes out,causing Naomi to leave him. However,after a family dinner he realises his priorities and reconciles with Naomi,putting the job on hold.
To Kathleen,looking after an invalid mother for most of her life,her one link with the outside world is as a school crossing lady. She is friendly with pupil Megan and her divorcee father Jimmy and when Megan and Jimmy are asked to do a reading for the school's Christmas play Megan,knowing her father is busy,asks Kathleen to join her instead.But Kathleen is illiterate,having given her life over to caring,and eventually must tell Megan,who feels betrayed. However there is reconciliation when Kathleen encourages Jimmy to let Megan contact her mother and the little girl teaches Kathleen computer literacy to communicate with her sister in Canada.
Superficially Jackie Jones in happily married to hair-dresser John but her poor literacy skills condemn her to being a house-wife and dependent on her husband for almost all household arrangements, a situation which suits him. Jackie,however,wants more and secretly enrols at her local adult literacy scheme. As she grows stronger in her confidence John feels she is drifting apart from him and begins an affair with employee Stacey. Jackie is now extremely literate and is able to read the credit card statement relating to her husband's affair. She concedes that they have been happy together but decides that now is the time for her strike out on her own and enjoy her new-found independence.