When Annie’s husband John dies of leukemia she and her best friend Chris resolve to raise money for a new settee in the local hospital waiting room. They eventually persuade four fellow members of the local Women’s Institute (WI) to pose nude for their next calendar, something of a change from the more traditional subject matter of rural churches and landscapes. As Chris puts it, "What we are talking about here is a slight shift from a WI Calendar of Spectacular Views, to a calendar of... Spectacular Views of the WI".

News of the women’s charitable venture spreads like wildfire, and hordes of press soon descend on the small village of Knapeley in the Yorkshire Dales. The calendar is a success, but Chris and Annie’s friendship is put to the test under the strain of their new-found fame.