Daisy-Belle, a talented young singer from the grim backstreets of Tyneside, has the potential to go far. And would-be impresario, Jack Fidler, instantly sees her promise. There's only one thing holding her back in Jack's eyes: her illegitimate daughter, Dolly. Ruthlessly ambitious, Jack arranges for the child to be 'stolen' by his sister, Maud, a maid in a wealthy Northumberland household. And so Dolly, renamed Rosina, is brought up by Maud's kind-hearted mistress, Geraldine Leighton. But when Geraldine tragically dies in childbirth, Maud lets slip to Rosina that she has no true blood ties to the family, and, with dreams of finding her real mother, Rosina leaves for good. She is taken in by a small theatrical troupe and her natural talent soon comes to the fore. But as her fame grows, she is brought into direct competition with one of the northern music halls' established stars, Daisy-Belle, who, unaware of her young rival's true identity, determines to destroy her...