The play is a fictional account of the remaining weeks of the comedian Tony Hancock (1924-1968) as he battled his insecurities whilst filming his final television series in Australia for Channel 7 and then committed suicide. His new show was to be called "Hancock Down Under." Famed for his radio and television shows "Hancock's Half Hour "in Great Britain, Hancock's career was virtually over when he descended into alcoholism. The play is a sympathetic portrayal of a tormented genius who, looking back on his troubled past, realizes at the end that he has made too many mistakes.
The title of the play is a Victorian metaphor for a hopeless effort to resist change.