Sergeant Scobie Malone (Taylor) of the New South Wales Police (NSW Police) is summoned to Sydney by the gruff Premier of New South Wales, Mr Flannery (played by an uncredited Leo McKern).<ref name="imdb"/> (The character of Flannery may have been based on Sir Robert Askin, the controversial Premier of NSW at the time.) Flannery asks Malone to travel to London, to arrest the senior Australian diplomat in London, Sir James Quentin (Plummer), High commissioner (Commonwealth) to the UK. Sir James, a political rival of the Premier, has become the only suspect in a 25 year old murder case.