Set during the Napoleonic wars of the early 1800s, Oliver Tobias stars as Jack Vincent, a swashbuckling ex-British naval captain turned smuggler. A strong-willed, independent man who lives by both his wits and the sword, Vincent is ably assisted by Sarah and petty thief Honesty Evans in his struggle to stay one step ahead of the Excise Men...
A pair of sailors turn up from Jack's past accusing him of treachery, but are they telling the truth?
Jack has to try to rescue Sarah and her grandfather, who are being held by a rabble of shipwrecked convicts.
Jack is determined to get his hands on a sunken cargo of rum - but he must beat a number of other interested parties to the prize.
Helping out an old smuggler called Rummy Culbert results in Vincent almost being caught by revenue officer Taggart.
Vincent makes a desparte attempt to rescue Honesty after he is pressganged.
During a dangerous smuggling expedition to France, Jack finds himself with a stowaway on board.