Three families live on a council estate in present-day South London. Phil is a minicab driver whose relationship with his common-law wife Penny, a Safeway checkout worker, is in the doldrums. The pair have two overweight children: Rachel, who works in an old people's home, and Rory, who is unemployed and aggressive.

Meanwhile, Phil's colleague Ron has a wife, Carol, who is slipping towards alcoholism, and a bored teenage daughter, Samantha, who teases the local loner, Craig, who is infatuated with her.

Elsewhere, single mother Maureen discovers that her daughter Donna is pregnant by her abusive boyfriend Jason. Following an argument, Jason storms off and has sex with Samantha in his car.

After dropping a sophisticated but friendly Frenchwoman off at a central London hotel, Phil switches off his mobile and two-way radio and drives alone to the coast.

While he is away, Rory is involved in a scuffle on the estate and collapses with chest pains. Samantha rings for an ambulance, and Rory is rushed to hospital where Penny and Rachel keep a vigil at his bedside.

That night, Penny berates Phil for his absence. He tearfully claims that she does not love him any more. They arrive at a truce and head up to bed together. Later, the family is reconciled around Rory's hospital bed.