Meet Timothy Lumsden, a 41-year-old librarian, diminutive in stature, with a keen interest in amateur dramatics. A smart enough chap, witty and bright; but women do often cause him to blush. This, however, is never an obstacle to his romantic intentions. What always is the obstacle is his mother - domineering, overbearing and omnipresent. Timothy still lives at home with his parents and it's his smothering, bossy mother who insists on treating him as if he were still a little boy.

His father often joins Timothy in silent defiance of this Gestapo officer in a dress, and his sister Muriel--who left the nest, like a Colditz escape party, many moons ago--is often there to lend an ear and offer advice. Timothy would love to fly away, but the apron strings seem to be made of reinforced steel. Will he ever cut them? Will his romantic dreams ever come true? Or will his mother always sabotage his relationships, and he remain forever sorry?