A young boy away at boarding school struggles when his mother and father split up.

Jake lives in the shadow of his dying grandfather, who was once the town's toughest hard man. Despite their hatred of each other, Jake's sole aim is to be as tough as the old man was. One day in Jake's life, as he drifts, drinks and fights, leads to a bleak realisation.

A student faced with an ultimatum to find £5 by morning - or lose his girlfriend - searches for friends he can tap and discovers that the crises in their lives are even greater than his own.

Four students working in a factory cause emotional, as well as industrial catastrophe, for when theory and reality meet it is the 'Silly Season'.