Norman Dempsey is pleased and flattered to be appointed governor of highly prestigious Malom prison. The Director General of the prison service briefs him that Malom is a model prison. "Welcome to the sunlit uplands" The Director General says, "We need you to simply carry on the excellent work of your predecessor who has achieved such exemplary standards. Change nothing." But from the moment he first enters the prison Dempsey encounters much that is very far from excellent - from basic housekeeping to corruption. And when he sets about challenging these issues he meets resistance from parts of his own staff and his superiors.