The Man in Grey 1943

In 1943 London, a Wren, Lady Clarissa Rohan Phyllis Calvert and an RAF pilot, Peter Rokeby Stewart Granger, meet at an auction of the Rohan estate, now being sold off. The auction is halted by blackout restrictions, and the pair agree to return the next day. As they part, the film flashes back to the early 1800s, centering on Miss Patchett’s finishing school for young ladies. A naive but popular student, Clarissa, insists on befriending the proud, bitter junior teacher, Hesther Shaw [Margaret Lockwood], despite a fortuneteller’s warning not to trust such women. Months later, Hesther runs away with a penniless ensign. Miss Patchett forbids mention of her name by the pupils, and Clarissa, feeling loyalty to Hesther, leaves the school. Back at home, Clarissa’s godmother arranges a marriage to the wealthy Marquess of Rohan [James Mason], a notorious rake who wishes only to have an heir, and thus the two lead separate lives.

One night, Clarissa hurries to a production of Othello in which Hesther plays Desdemona. On the way, her coach is waylaid by a mysterious man, Rokeby [Stewart Granger], who turns out to be the actor playing Othello. After the play, Clarissa engages Hesther to be her son’s governess. Eventually, Lord Rohan invites Hesther to stay on as Clarissa’s companion. Rohan tells Hesther that he knows she abandoned her husband, who later died in Fleet Prison. He admires her ruthless ambition, and they become lovers. At Epsom Downs, Clarissa and Rokeby meet again. They encounter the same fortuneteller who warned Clarissa about Hesther. This time, the prophetess recognizes Rokeby as Clarissa’s true love and warns her again about dangerous women. Later, Rokeby confesses his love to Clarissa. They plan to elope to Jamaica, but Rohan confronts them in Vauxhall Gardens, and they fight. The contest, however, is stopped by the Prince Regent [Raymond Lovell].

Rokeby decides it would be wiser to sail to Jamaica alone and summon Clarissa later. She bids him farewell at the port. But once Rokeby has departed, she falls ill and is taken to Rohan’s London house. Hesther drugs Clarissa, opens the windows on a storm and dampens the fire—ensuring her death. Later, Clarissa’s faithful page, Toby [Harry Scott], reveals all to Rohan. Though he did not love her, Clarissa was his wife and a Rohan, so he beats Hesther to death with a cane, fulfilling the family motto, “Who Dishonours Us, Dies.”

Flash-forward to 1943, Peter and Clarissa, descendants of their earlier counterparts, are seen departing the auction, hand in hand. They run to catch a London bus and look toward a shared future together.