A group of 21st-century volunteers move into a recreation of a Victorian slum in the heart of modern-day London. It is the 1860s and London is the capital of a global superpower, work is plentiful but so is cheap labour.

The slum dwellers have left behind the boom years of the 1860s and must now live with the harsh realities of the economic depression of the 1870s. The Howarth's are forced to employ their neighbour's children to meet their orders.

The slum and its residents enter the turbulent 1880s. Unemployment rocketed and living conditions got worse - but still new workers poured into London from around the world. The pressures are soon felt by the volunteers.

The slum-dwellers enter the 20th century and change is in the air. The Birds shop has joined the growing Co-operative movement serving members rather than profiting from customers. Women's Suffrage is a hot topic.