Jonathan Dakers' early ambition was to become a great surgeon and to marry Edie Martyn. But, on the death of his father, he is obliged to start work as a partner in a poor general practice in the Black Country. Edie falls in love with Jonathan's brother, Harold, who is killed in the Great War, and Jonathan marries her as planned. It is only afterwards that he realises he now loves another.

Told by his doctor he has no more than a few months to live, drab British workingman George Bird (Alec Guinness) decides to spend his savings on lodging at a seaside resort. Once there, however, he finds his identity caught between upstairs and downstairs, the guests and the “help.” A droll social commentary as well as an unpredictable dark comedy about life, death, and luck, Last Holiday is one of Guinness’s finest moments.

彼得-斯丹迪什（Peter Standish），一位美国核物理学家，居住在英国伦敦伯克利广场的一座古宅中。这座宅邸是他祖先留下的遗产，一直维持着18世纪的原貌。彼得一直对和自己同名，样貌也出奇相像的祖先充满了好奇。在研究了祖先的书信之后，他坚信自己一定会在某一时刻，穿越时光，回到1784年，也就是他祖先生活的那个年代。在一个雷电交加的夜晚，他被闪电击中，真的回到了过去……