Walter Goodfellow (Rowan Atkinson), vicar of the British village Little Wallop, is busy composing the perfect sermon. So busy, in fact, that he fails to notice his bored wife's (Kristin Scott Thomas) flirtation with her American golf instructor (Patrick Swayze), his daughter's revolving set of boyfriends, or his son's status as the favorite target of bullies. Enter Grace Hawkins (Maggie Smith), the new housekeeper, who has a drastic solution to the family's problems.