When Stella Simmons comes to the Devonshire village of Burracombe to start her teaching career she is alone in the world. Orphaned as child & brought up in a childrens home she was separated from her sister Muriel & has never been able to trace her. Stella is soon caught up in the life of the village & especially in the plans for celebrating the Festival of Britain. As headmistress Miss Kemp & vicar Basil Harvey try to keep the peace between villagers who all have their own ideas for the proposed pageant & fair Stella tries with the help of artist Luke Ferris to find her sister. But Luke has his own troubles...THE BELLS OF BURRACOMBE begins the story of life in a Devonshire village in the 1950s & shows us a picture of Britain coming to terms with the aftermath of the Second World War & entering a new decade.