Charley Wyckham and Jack Chesney pressure fellow student Fancourt Babberly to pose as Charley's Brazilian Aunt Donna Lucia. Their purpose is to have a chaperone for their amorous visits with Amy and Kitty, niece and ward of crusty Stephen Spettigue. Complications begin when Fancourt, in drag, becomes the love object of old Spettigue and Sir Francis Chesney.
In the modern day (1920s) story, Adam, a plumber, is happily married to Eve, a wardrobe-obsessed housewife, until she accidentally meets a supercilious fashion designer. At the prompting of her neighbour, who has secret designs on Adam, Eve secretly becomes a fashion model by day, knowing that her husband would disapprove. This tale is book-ended by a sequence of the two princi...