John Grant is returning to Sydney after a year teaching at one-classroom school in the Outback. Shortly after hitting the road he collides with a kangaroo and finds himself marooned in a small mining town, awaiting repairs on his car. With little to do but drink beer, John is seduced into a raucous, illegal gambling game. After a short exhilarating winning streak he loses everything. This triggers a dangerous series of events that render John a broken and desperate man. A two-part miniseries adaptation of Kenneth Cook's novel.