纪录片通过采访英国高等法院12位大法官中的四位——高院院长菲利普斯勋爵、副院长霍普勋爵、大法官柯尔勋爵，以及高院中唯一一位女性黑尔女男爵，揭示大法官是如何工作的，他们与政府之间的斗争，和自身情感的斗争，以及为了做出正确决定而承担的重任。
高等法院无权按照自己对于“法律应该如何规定”的理解去判案，而只能依据“法律实际是怎么规定的”来判案。
“我们的民主制度保护最基本人权，这些权利属于任何人，无论他们是谁或是从哪里来。”——2004年英国高院副院长霍普勋爵驳回英国政府拘押外籍嫌犯政策的判词。
“基本人权有着最根本的重要性。”——高院院长菲利普斯勋爵
“我们必须成为一道对抗行政决定的壁垒，特别是当我们发现存在对于基本人权的不可接受的侵犯时。我想这就是高等法院遵循的一条根本原则。对于这一原则如何强调都不过分。不能授予行政当局不受限制的权力。”——高院大法官柯尔勋爵

In his plot for Noises Off, Frayn plays on the concept of a play within a play, in this case a dreadful sex-comedy titled Nothing On—the type of play in which young girls run about in their underwear, old men drop their trousers, and many doors continually open and shut. Nothing On is set in "a delightful 16th-century posset mill"[2][3] that has been converted to a modern dwelling for which renters are solicited; the fictional playwright is appropriately named Robin Housemonger. Each of the three acts of Noises Off contains a performance of the first act of Nothing On.[4]
Act One is set at the dress rehearsal, the night before opening at the (fictional[5]) Grand Theatre in Weston-super-Mare, with the cast still fumbling with entrances and exits, missed cues, misspoken lines, and bothersome props, most notably several plates of sardines.
Act Two portrays a Wednesday matinee performance one month later,[6] at the (again fictional[7]) Theatre Royal in Ashton-under-Lyne. In this act, the play is seen from backstage, providing a view that reveals the deteriorating personal relationships among the cast that have led to offstage shenanigans and onstage bedlam. Also, there appears to be no true resolution. The play simply falls into turmoil and disorder before the curtain is pulled.
In Act Three, we see a performance near the end of the ten-week run, at the (still fictional) Municipal Theatre in Stockton-on-Tees, when personal friction has continued to increase and everyone is bored and anxious to be done with the play. The actors attempt to cover up a series of mishaps but only compound the problems and draw attention to the bungling performance.
Much of the comedy emerges from the subtle variations in each version as off-stage chaos affects on-stage performance, with a great deal of slapstick. The contrast between players' on-stage and off-stage personalities is also a source of comic dissonance.