What Is The Day of the Triffids About?
The premise of The Day of the Triffids in 286 words, with nothing given away. The full story follows below.
In a near‑future Britain the sky erupts in a cascade of brilliant lights, and when the glow fades the world is left in a sudden, collective darkness. The mass blindness brings civilization to a trembling halt, leaving streets filled with panic and a society forced to re‑evaluate every routine. Adding to the chaos are the triffids—mobile, carnivorous plants originally cultivated for their oil—that begin to move with a purposeful menace, turning the already fragile landscape into a place where the line between predator and prey blurs.
Among the few who can still see is Bill Masen, a quiet, observant man whose work on a triffid farm gave him both intimate knowledge of the plants and a lingering sting of their poison. Because his eyes were bandaged at the moment the lights struck, he awakens to a world that has changed beyond recognition, his sight suddenly a rare and valuable commodity. Shortly after, he encounters Jo Payton, another sighted survivor whose calm determination offers a counterpoint to Bill’s cautious pragmatism. Together they navigate a Britain where the blind must learn new ways to survive, and the sighted grapple with the weight of responsibility, forming tentative alliances with other pockets of people trying to rebuild a semblance of community amid the ruins.
The film’s tone is a blend of stark, post‑apocalyptic realism and an uneasy, almost primal dread that comes from nature turning hostile. As strangers band together, differing visions of how to protect the vulnerable surface, hinting at deeper moral questions about leadership, family, and the future of humanity. The ever‑present threat of the roaming triffids casts a lingering shadow over every decision, ensuring that hope is always tempered by the constant need for vigilance and adaptation.
What Happens in The Day of the Triffids?
The complete story of The Day of the Triffids, from the first scene to the last, in 779 words (about 3 minutes). Spoilers throughout. Names in the text link to 3 cast member pages.
Spoilers ahead
In late 20th century Great Britain, a spectacular meteor shower blinds most of humanity, bringing society to a sudden, enveloping collapse. Unaware of the wider catastrophe, Bill Masen, Jonathan Duttine has managed to keep his sight while confined in a hospital with his eyes bandaged at the moment the storm of light erupts around the country. Bill works on a triffid farm, a place where mobile, carnivorous plants are cultivated for their oil, with their venomous stings kept intact to improve the quality of the product. Long before this crisis, Bill had been stung by one of these dangerous plants, and even though he wore protective gear, some of the poison slipped into his eyes. In the quiet hours of the hospital, he hesitantly peels away the bandages and slowly begins to grasp the enormity of the catastrophe unfolding outside.
Bill rescues Jo Payton, Emma Relph, from her blind captor and discovers that she had slept through the meteor shower, thus retaining her sight. Together they begin to navigate a Britain that has suddenly turned dependent on the newly blind for survival, their mutual hope tempered by the fear and confusion that now governs everyday life. They soon meet a small band of sighted survivors who have decided to leave London behind and set up a new community somewhere away from the chaos, determined to rebuild civilization from the ground up.
Yet their plan clashes with the views of Jack Coker, a sighted man who wants to keep the group in the city and help the blind rather than abandon them. Maurice Colbourne embodies this wary, calculating stance as he presses for a stubborn, London-centered solution. When the others reject his vision, he and a handful of sighted allies take a harsher route, capturing some of the group, including Bill and Jo. He assigns each captive to a different subgroup of the blind, and Bill is chained to two of his charges to prevent him from leaving them.
As if the human crisis were not enough, the triffids break loose and roam through the newly blind population, preying on people and spreading fear as they move. The dual threats of the carnivorous plants and an ominous, spreading disease push most of Bill’s circle toward ruin, with many of them dying and the remainder scattering to distant corners of the countryside. In the midst of this upheaval, Bill begins a determined search for Jo and ends up allying with Jack, who admits that his original plan did not succeed as he had hoped.
Their journey takes them across the English countryside, where they come upon fragments of the former group who had left London. The survivors’ moral divides surface again in a stark clash: those who stayed behind, led by Miss Durrant, refuse to accept that polygamy might be necessary to repopulate the world. This ideological rift complicates the search for a secure future, and the group continues to move, warding off a harsh and uncertain fate.
As time passes, Bill encounters a young sighted girl named Susan, who joins him on his trek. He eventually recalls Jo’s description of a place belonging to her friends in the Sussex Downs, and there he is finally reunited with Jo. After constructing a protective fence around their farm to keep the deadly triffids at bay, the couple settles down, creating a fragile but hopeful life for themselves and a small band of blind friends and their children.
Six years slip by, and suddenly Jack reappears, arriving by helicopter with news that shifts the balance of power. Miss Durrant’s faction has fallen to a deadly disease, but another faction has managed to secure the Isle of Wight and has driven back the triffids there. With the situation deteriorating faster where they currently stand, Bill, Jo, and their community of blind families and their children prepare to relocate to the safety of that island stronghold.
Before they can depart, a contingent of uniformed men arrives in an armoured car the next day. They belong to a group attempting to impose a feudal order, with sighted people placed as the ruling aristocracy over the blind. Their plan is to allocate more blind people to Bill and Jo, and to take Susan away so she can learn how to care for others within this new hierarchy. Bill seizes a moment of opportunity, getting the soldiers drunk and sabotaging their armored vehicle. By dawn, Bill and the rest of the group have driven away, leaving the gates open as the triffids close in, a sobering reminder that survival in this new world will depend on courage, resilience, and the stubborn hope of keeping faith with one another.
The Day of the Triffids Timeline: Every Key Event in Order
12 key events in the order they happen, from “Meteor shower blinds humanity” to “Armoured men, feudal order, and flight”. 12 events name a place, across 12 locations.
- 1
Meteor shower blinds humanity
In late 20th century Great Britain, a spectacular meteor shower blinds most of the population overnight. Bill Masen, who is in hospital with his eyes bandaged, remains unaware of the catastrophe at first. As the city descends into chaos, the absence of sight leaves people vulnerable and frightened.
When:Night of the shower Where:Hospital, Britain
- 2
Bill perceives the scale of the disaster
Bill tentatively removes his bandages and discovers the scale of the disaster around him. He sees a world suddenly deprived of sight and law, as panic and confusion spread through the hospital and beyond. The collapse of civilization begins to unfold.
When:Soon after the shower Where:Hospital vicinity, Britain
- 3
Bill rescues Jo; she remains sighted
Bill rescues Josella 'Jo' Playton from her blind captor and learns she slept through the meteor shower and still retains her sight. They form a bond as they begin to navigate an increasingly dangerous world. This rescue marks the start of their shared journey.
When:Shortly after the shower Where:Hospital vicinity and surrounding area
- 4
Sighted survivors plan a new settlement
Bill and Jo join a small group of sighted survivors who plan to leave London and establish a new settlement to rebuild civilisation. They aim to shelter the blind and create a safer future beyond the city. This moment shifts the story from mere survival to community-building.
When:Shortly after the shower Where:London area and surrounding countryside
- 5
Jack Coker opposes the exodus
The group is opposed by sighted Jack Coker, who wants them to stay in London and help the blind rather than abandon them. He frames a plan that would keep authority centralized and dependent on the old order. The disagreement sets up a moral conflict that drives later action.
When:Soon after formation Where:London
- 6
Capture and restraint during conflict
When the group resists, Jack and a few supporters capture several members, including Bill and Jo. Bill is handcuffed to two of his charges to prevent him from leaving them. The incident strains the fragile alliance and escalates tensions.
When:Shortly after the capture Where:London outskirts
- 7
Triffids rampage through the blind
The triffids break loose and roam through the blind population, slaughtering and feeding on them. The survivors scramble to stay alive as the plants spread and chaos deepens. The world grows deadlier as both disease and predators devastate communities.
When:Soon after the capture Where:British countryside and urban areas
- 8
Journey continues amid factional splits
Bill and Jack drive through the countryside and encounter a faction that left London. They discover a split in morality: Miss Durrant's group resists polygamy as a means to repopulate. The division shapes the path of the survivors as they search for safety.
When:In the weeks that follow Where:British countryside
- 9
Bill teams up with Susan
Bill meets a young sighted girl, Susan, who becomes a companion on the road. She joins their efforts to stay alive and navigate the new world.
When:During the journey Where:Countryside
- 10
Reuniting with Jo in the Sussex Downs
Bill recalls Jo's mention of a place in the Sussex Downs and is eventually reunited with her there. They establish a safe farm, erect a protective fence to keep out the triffids, and begin raising a family.
When:Several years after the disaster Where:Sussex Downs
- 11
Six years later: arrival and factional change
Six years pass and Jack arrives in a helicopter. Miss Durrant's group has been wiped out by disease, while the other faction has secured the Isle of Wight and destroyed the local triffids there. The survivors face a shifting balance of control as they search for safety.
When:Six years after the initial events Where:Sussex Downs / Isle of Wight
- 12
Armoured men, feudal order, and flight
Uniformed men arrive in an armoured car, proposing a feudal society with sighted aristocracy and plans to assign more blind to Bill and Jo. They take Susan away to learn how to care for others. Bill gets the soldiers drunk and sabotages their vehicle, and the group drives away, leaving the gates open for the approaching triffids.
When:The next day Where:Farm near Sussex Downs
Who Are the Main Characters in The Day of the Triffids?
3 characters, among them Bill Masen (Jonathan Duttine), Jo Payton (Emma Relph) and Jack Coker (Maurice Colbourne): who each one is and the part they play in the story. Every profile links to the actor’s page.
- BM
Bill Masen (Jonathan Duttine)
Played by Jonathan Duttine
A sighted man who works on a triffid farm and survives the meteor-shower blackout by virtue of being hospitalized with his eyes bandaged. He gradually grasps the scale of the catastrophe, rescues Jo, and becomes a driving force for a small survivor group. He eventually sabotages an armored vehicle to help his people escape and seeks a safer place to rebuild, embodying cautious leadership and resilience.
- 🧭 Leader
- 🛡️ Survivor
- JP
Jo Payton (Emma Relph)
Played by Emma Relph
A sighted survivor who slept through the meteor shower and is rescued by Bill. She joins the growing community and becomes a central partner in the search for safety, sharing in the hard choices of rebuilding life after disaster. Her presence anchors the human dimension of the survivors’ journey.
- 🧭 Survivor
- 🌟 Hope
- JC
Jack Coker (Maurice Colbourne)
Played by Maurice Colbourne
A sighted survivor who advocates keeping London as a base and organizing the blind into groups under a new ruling class. He captures Bill and Jo and enforces divisions among the survivors, revealing the darker impulse to control in a post-apocalyptic society. His plan ultimately falters as the groups split and new settlements form.
- 🧭 Leader
- 🛡️ Opponent
Where and When Is The Day of the Triffids Set?
The Day of the Triffids is set in London, Sussex Downs, Isle of Wight and English countryside (Late 20th century). Here is why the time and place matter to the story.
When
Late 20th century
The events unfold in late 20th-century Britain, following a spectacular meteor shower that blinds most of humanity. Society collapses overnight and bands of survivors form in the wake of the catastrophe. Over several years, different communities rise, split, and attempt to reestablish some semblance of civilization.
Where
London, Sussex Downs, Isle of Wight, English countryside
London becomes a site of collapse after the meteor shower, with streets emptied and law and order eroded. The Sussex Downs becomes a haven where survivors attempt to rebuild a life away from the ruined city. The Isle of Wight and the surrounding countryside serve as refuges and transit routes as groups move to safer grounds and arable land.
- 🌆 Post-apocalyptic
- 🧭 Survival
- 🏞️ Countryside
What Are the Themes of The Day of the Triffids?
3 ideas the story keeps returning to, among them Survival & Community, Power & Control and Nature's Threat.
-
01
Survival & Community
The film centers on how people must cooperate to endure a world changed by blindness. Groups form, diverge, and negotiate leadership under extreme stress. Bill and Jo's alliance embodies practical care and mutual aid in the face of constant danger. The narrative probes how shared goals can bind strangers into a fragile society.
-
02
Power & Control
A new organization attempts to rule the blind as a new aristocracy, challenging the idea of a shared rebuilding. Sighted leaders imagine a feudal order where power is assigned, and children are used to repopulate. The armored car arrival and the plan to corral the blind reveal the dangers of centralized control in a lawless world.
-
03
Nature's Threat
The triffids remain a relentless ecological menace, roaming the countryside and preying on vulnerable populations. A mysterious, deadly disease compounds the danger, accelerating the collapse of the fragile settlements. The natural world is both a resource to exploit (oil from triffid pods) and a deadly opponent that cannot be tamed without cooperation.
What Kind of Film Is The Day of the Triffids?
Dark in tone, with steady pacing and a moderate story, going by the plot summary.
- Tone
- Dark
- Pacing
- Steady
- Story
- Moderate
- Intensity
- High
- Ending
- Happy
A steady-paced and grim post-apocalyptic horror where humanity's desperate struggle for survival against carnivorous plants is underscored by tense moral dilemmas and a fragile sense of hope.
- apocalyptic
- tense
- survivalist
- somber
- grim
- desperate
- post-apocalyptic survival
- societal collapse
- alien invasion
- humanity vs nature
Content notes: mass death, carnivorous plant attacks, blindness, captivity, feudal exploitation.
