At her stately home somewhere in 1890s rural England, Lady Hunstanton has assembled a house party of a motley assortment of representatives of the English upper and middle classes, along with an idealistic young American heiress. The most glittering guests are the witty and immoral Lord Illingworth and Mrs Allonby. To young Gerald Arbuthnot they embody everything that is glamorous and desirable about modern society; but his mother, the enigmatic Rachel Arbuthnot has reasons to distrust their character and to fear their influence. . .

Oscar Wilde weaves his trademark wit around a surprisingly serious plot that takes a swipe at the hypocrisy of Victorian society.