Derek Jacobi narrates a claymation version of Charles Dickens' New Year's Eve tale. Toby Veck, a poor messenger, huddles in a church doorway waiting for work and wondering why he was ever born. As night falls, he heads home in despair. But then he manages to save a homeless man and his niece from being jailed for trespassing. Toby takes them home and puts a roof over their heads for the night-a good deed that inspires an unusual dream and a new lease on life.