[1][2] The film stars Ian Roberts and Gavin van den Berg in lead roles along with Diane Wilson, Keith Grenville and Percy Sieff in supportive roles.

It depicts the life of the rebellious Boer farmer Sloet Steenkamp and the Captain of the British Army James Kerwin.

Sloet is originally sentenced to execution for treason, due to his past as a British citizen originally from the Cape Colony that joined the war on the Boer side; his execution is commuted to life imprisonment on Saint Helena Island.

This highly motivates him to escape as, unlike the other prisoners who will be released after the war, he instead expects to remain imprisoned.

The film details his ultimately unsuccessful attempts at escaping the island.