Nora Clitheroe runs a rooming house in Dublin while trying to avoid the political turmoil raging around her in revolutionary Ireland.

Despite Jack's promises to Nora that he will cease his participation with the rebels, he becomes a commander with the Irish Citizen Army as it plans to occupy the Dublin General Post Office as part of the Easter Rising.

[5] Arthur Shields, who plays Padraig Pearse in the film, participated in the actual Easter Rising rebellion as a youth.

[5] The play as originally presented on the Dublin stage contained a great deal of broad satire approaching farce, but the comedic aspects were removed entirely for the screenplay.

In a contemporary review for The New York Times, critic Frank S. Nugent called the film "a freely translated version which has realized part of the play's intent but missed more of it" and wrote:Mr. O'Casey was not interested in glorifying the Easter rebellion of 1916; he thought it tragic and foolhardy and pitiful.