The Duchess of Duke Street - Plot Summary

Plot Summary

Beautiful but low-born Louisa Leyton (Gemma Jones) has one driving ambition: to become a great cook. She finds employment as a cook in the household of Lord Henry Norton (Bryan Coleman). His handsome, wealthy, aristocratic nephew, Charlie Tyrrell (Christopher Cazenove), attempts to seduce the attractive redhead, but she rebuffs him, refusing to be sidetracked from her ambition to become the best cook in London. Louisa manages to convince Lord Norton's sexist French chef, Monsieur Alex (George Pravda), into accepting her as his apprentice.

When Louisa is unexpectedly called upon to prepare a dinner by herself, she catches the eye of one of the guests, Albert Edward, the Prince of Wales (Roger Hammond), who admires both her cooking and her appearance. After the dinner, Louisa is pressured into becoming Edward's mistress. Against her own wishes, she agrees to marry Lord Norton's head butler, Augustus 'Gus' Trotter (Donald Burton), to maintain the appearance of respectability and to protect the royal reputation. Gus and Louisa are given a house, and her involvement with the prince commences. In time, Edward's mother, Queen Victoria, dies leaving Edward to assume the throne as King Edward VII and causing him to end his relationship with Louisa.

Louisa's shaky marriage to Gus had become strained, both from her affair with the prince and her great success as a chef. In an effort to help Gus recover his pride, Louisa purchases the Bentinck Hotel and talks a reluctant Gus into managing it. Before long, Gus, abetted by his sister, lets the authority go to his head. His arrogance alienates the staff and, more importantly, the guests. Once Louisa discovers that he has lavishly entertained his friends and driven away the guests, she throws both him and his meddling sister out. Then she discovers, to her horror, the mountain of bills he has left unpaid.

With only Mary to assist her, she sets to work to pay the debts, taking any and all cooking jobs, however humble, but finally, overcome by fatigue, she collapses in the street very early one morning. Fortunately, Charlie Tyrrell is passing by (leaving a late night assignation), and takes her back to the Bentinck. Once he learns of Louisa's financial woes, he overcomes her resistance, pays her debts, and become a silent partner in the hotel.

Louisa keeps one of the Bentinck's employees, an elderly head waiter called Merriman (John Welsh). She hires the brisk, soldierly Starr (John Cater), who is always accompanied by his dog Fred, as the porter. From their former employer, Louisa takes along her loyal Welsh assistant and friend Mary (Victoria Plucknett). (In the final episode, Starr and Mary get engaged.)

Rounding out the principal cast is Major Toby Smith-Barton (Richard Vernon), an upper-class, retired Army officer. The Major enjoys wagering on the horse races, and ends up unable to pay his hotel bill. Reluctant to "toss him out on the street" and liking the man, Louisa offers the Major a position: general adviser, bellhop and greeter.

Charlie and Louisa have a very passionate romance. Infatuated with Charlie, Louisa begins to neglect both the hotel and her cooking. Recognizing what is happening, the Major steps in and has a discreet word with Charles. Knowing how much the establishment means to Louisa, Charlie leaves for an extended stay in America, giving Louisa a chance to refocus on her business. Grief-stricken at first, Louisa eventually regains her senses and makes the Bentinck a great success, only to discover that she is pregnant. Eventually, Louisa secretly gives birth to their illegitimate daughter, Lottie (Lalla Ward). Louisa accepts Charlie's suggestion that Lottie be discreetly adopted by a young couple who work on his estate. Later, Charlie and Louisa agree to remain friends, but not lovers.

Sometime later, upon the death of his father, Charlie inherits the family fortune and the title of Lord Haslemere. With Louisa's approval, Charlie marries another woman. He tells Louisa that if his marriage has any hope of working, he will have to be away from her.

However, when Charlie's wife later passes away, he and Louisa renew their relationship. They decide to postpone their wedding until the end of the First World War. Tragically, Charlie dies of a head injury received while in the trenches. Louisa is grief-stricken, but gradually recovers.

Louisa informs the teenage Lottie the identity of her true parents. Lottie accepts her mother's offer to take her to London. Louisa, not quite knowing what to do with her, eventually sends her to a Swiss finishing school to become a lady. When Lottie returns, she has her heart set on being a singer instead.

Louisa's parents occasionally make an appearance. She is on very good terms with her ineffectual, but loving father (John Rapley), but not with her critical, abrasively selfish mother (June Brown). Late in the series, Louisa's father dies, but not before giving his modest savings to his granddaughter, Lottie, to help her pursue her singing career. Louisa becomes reconciled to Lottie's career choice.