Jimmy (Robert Carlyle) is a small-time crook living in Glasgow, Scotland, long since absent from the lives of his ex-wife, Shirley (Shirley Henderson), and 12-year-old daughter, Marlene (Finn Atkins), who live in England's Midlands. One day, Jimmy happens to catch Shirley and Marlene on a TV talk show, where Shirley has rejected the proposal of her boyfriend, Dek (Rhys Ifans). Taking this as a sign, Jimmy up and leaves for the Midlands to win Shirley back.
