In 1787 Britain banished its unwanted citizens - orphans, petty thieves, prostitutes and highwaymen - to Sydney in Australia. Among the first convicts are close friends Elizabeth Quinn (MyAnna Buring), Tommy Barrett (Julian Rihind-Tutt) and James Freeman (Russell Tovey). Elizabeth and Tommy are also engaged in an illicit relationship - illicit because it is a tenet of this combustible society, that relationships between the convicts are the sole preserve of the male soldiers. When their relationship is revealed to those in charge, it sets in motion a series of events that forces the pragmatic, idealistic Governor Phillip (David Wenham) into further opposition with his nemesis Major Ross, a man who thinks the only chance of survival is to rule with an iron fist. But their relationship also threatens the close bond between Elizabeth, Tommy and James at a time, and in a place, where survival depends on having the back of those you love.