In 1930s London, three orphan girls are adopted by their great uncle, who is an eccentric paleontologist, and his niece.

Pauline (Emma Watson), Petrova (Yasmin Paige), and Posy Fossil (Lucy Boynton) live with Sylvia Brown (Emilia Fox), their guardian. Money is tight and as the story opens, three boarders--a garage owner (Marc Warren), a retired English professor (Gemma Jones), and a dance teacher (Lucy Cohu) --- come to stay. The dance teacher, Theo Dane has the girls accepted to her school by the formidable Madame Fidolia (Dame Eileen Atkins), and the three go on stage to help raise money. Each discovers her talents --- Pauline as an actress, Petrova in fixing engines, and Posy as a dancer.—Hilary Caws-Elwitt

Set in 1930s London, this movie tells the tale of orphans Pauline (Emma Watson), Petrova (Yasmin Paige), and Posy Fossil (Lucy Boynton), who are adopted by their Great-Uncle Matthew, an eccentric explorer (Richard Griffiths), and raised as sisters by his selfless niece, Sylvia Brown (Emilia Fox). The story revolves around each girl's struggle to fulfill her dreams: Pauline longs to be an actress, Petrova yearns to be an aviator, and Posy seems born to be a ballerina. But when Great-Uncle Matthew disappears, the money runs out --- and the girls have a fight on their hands. They struggle to balance personal ambition with the need to survive physically, emotionally, and financially.—BBC Press Office