St. Martin’s Lane 1938

Charles Staggers Charles Laughton is a London street performer, or busker, who leads a small troupe with Gus McNaughton and Tyrone Guthrie. He protects Libby Vivien Leigh, a runaway and pickpocket, when she steals a gold cigarette case from Harley Prentiss Rex Harrison. He takes her into their troupe, turning their trio into a quartet.

Libby attracts the attention of Prentiss and his wealthy friends, who can offer her a life and career away from the streets. When she leaves, she cruelly rejects Charles’s marriage proposal, and he doesn’t want to go on with the act anymore, and becomes an alcoholic. Libby’s career, however, is a big success; she is offered a Hollywood contract. She asks Prentiss to marry her, but he declines, saying he doesn’t want to be thrown away, like Charles, as a mere stepping stone for her career.

In the press of crowds waiting to see her as a big star, Charles tries to catch Libby’s attention but is arrested for causing a disturbance and spends time in prison. After his release he earns a living by pretending to be a blind match seller. On her way to rehearsals, Libby bumps into him and pushes him into her taxi. At the theatre, she persuades him to audition, but it goes badly and he walks out. Libby chases after him, begging him to return. He shakes his head. They hug and say goodbye. As he walks off, Charles sees his former busking friends performing; he joins them and they start doing their old act together.