Threads

In the English city of Sheffield, young adults Ruth Beckett and Jimmy Kemp plan to marry after learning of Ruth's unplanned pregnancy. As an international crisis develops after a Soviet Union invasion in northern Iran, daily life in Sheffield continues while an American ultimatum expires, leading to armed conflict between America and the Soviet Union. Inhabitants of Sheffield panic buy and loot as society destabilizes over two days, with Ruth's family preparing for nuclear war and Jimmy's family constructing a lean-to shelter. As Britain prepares for the possibility of nuclear war, a tactical nuclear attack on Finningley causes collateral damage to Sheffield, followed by a 1-megaton weapon detonating over the city, leading to widespread destruction and societal collapse.