Tom Bell, Alison Steadman and Stephanie Beacham are the stars in BBC1's new ten-part drama series No Bananas, which charts the changing fortunes of two very different families during the Second World War. The Hamiltons are snobbish and well-heeled, while the Slaters are a mixture of working-class respectability and roguish rough diamonds.

When a shotgun wedding forces them to rub shoulders, they view each other with ill-disguised suspicion, but as the war impinges more deeply on their lives, barriers break down and unlikely liaisons develop.

The women get their first taste of economic and sexual freedom - even grandma Slater finds romance. But the heads of the families - Thomas Slater and Arthur Hamilton have their principles challenged. These are rich pickings however for the less scrupulous clan members, such as black sheep Tom Slater and the wickedly glamorous Dorothea.