When the tiny nation of Grand Fenwick suffers a plumbing malfunction, Prime Minister Rupert Mountjoy (Ron Moody) decides to use the competitive nature of the space race to his advantage. He requests financial aid for space research from the United States, and then uses the capital to heat Grand Fenwick's collective bathwater. Meanwhile, the nation's lone scientist, Professor Kokintz (David Kossoff), toils to prepare a fake rocket for launch, fueled by the country's most famous export: wine.