The passionate band conductor, Danny Ormondroyd, finds he is fighting a losing battle to keep the rest of the band members committed. His son, Phil, is badly in debt and becomes a clown for children's parties, but this fails to prevent his wife and children walking out on him. In debt, Phil votes for the redundancy money, which he becomes ashamed of. As Danny collapses in the street and is hospitalised, Phil suffers a mental breakdown while entertaining a group of children, as part of a harvest festival in a church. He refers to himself as "Coco the scab"—a name that he had been called by a debt collector who he had asked to wait until the redundancy money had come through. Eventually, he attempts suicide by trying to hang himself, but is taken to the hospital. Phil reveals to Danny that in light of the colliery's closure, the band has decided not to continue playing.