Walter Wilding has lived his life secure in the knowledge that he was the son of his mother. But a chance encounter shocks him to his deathbed, leaving his friend and Executor George Vendale charged with the finding of the real Walter Wilding, Meanwhile George pitches woo to Margerite Obenreizer, but has to deal with her dastardly guardian and uncle.

The story twists and turns from the wine cellars of England, Soho and then the Alps of Switzerland, where George discovers that Mr Obenreizer is right about one thing to the last... 'So little is the world, that one cannot keep away from persons.'

Originally written as a stage play by Wilkie Collins and Charles Dickens, it was later turned into a collaborative novel by the two.

Narrated by Michael Ward.