In the 1890s, famed writer Oscar Wilde (Robert Morley) embarks on a relationship with Lord Alfred Douglas (John Neville), despite his marriage to Constance (Phyllis Calvert). This relationship and its consequences are the focus of this dramatization of Wilde's life. Wilde sues Alfred's father, the Marquis of Queensberry (Edward Chapman), for libel - a lawsuit that turns against him when a prosecuting lawyer forces him to admit to his homosexuality, leading to a second lawsuit.