Originally made for British television, CAUSE CELEBRE is based on the tragic true story of Alma Rattenbury, whose life became the talk of England in the 1930s. Helen Mirren stars as Alma, a woman in her mid 30s married to a much older man and in love with their 18 year-old chauffeur, George Bowman. The scandal began when Alma discovered her husband had been brutally beaten with a blunt object, and took him to the hospital where he soon died. Afterwards, Alma confessed, as did George. Sensationalized in the press, attorney T.J. O`Connor (Suchet), convinced of Alma`s innocence, takes the case and tries to find the truth about a woman who has become trapped by her passions.