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1695: in his final illness, composer Henry Purcell (Niall Ashdown) is experiencing feverish dream-like hallucinations in which the past, present and fantasy collide, and his songs take on a life of their own. His bedroom is transformed into a theatre and Purcell revisits his past including his childhood memories of the Great Fire of London and his early romance with his wife. The drama is soundtracked by Purcell's compositions: from rarely performed bawdy theatre ballads and joyful celebrations of love, to slow airs, a 'mad song', and numbers from his semi-operas.