Jimmy is a highly educated but deeply disillusioned 25-year-old working-class man who runs a sweet stall. He spends his days launching angry, articulate tirades against the British class system and the general passivity he perceives in those around him. Though fiercely passionate, his frustration often manifests as cruelty, particularly toward his wife and her middle-class background.

Alison is a young woman from a comfortable upper-middle-class background who abandoned her privileged upbringing to marry Jimmy. She operates as the primary target for her husband's rage, usually responding with a quiet detachment that only fuels his anger. Currently harboring a secret pregnancy, she struggles to maintain her composure in the claustrophobic environment of their attic flat.

Cliff is a working-class Welshman who lives with Jimmy and Alison, helping run the sweet stall. Self-described as uneducated, he possesses a calm, easygoing nature that contrasts sharply with Jimmy's volatility. He acts as a buffer in the household, attempting to defuse tension and offering gentle comfort to Alison when Jimmy's tirades escalate.

Helena is an actress and a prominent member of Alison's former middle-class social circle. When she comes to stay at the cramped attic flat, her rigid traditional values immediately clash with Jimmy's anti-establishment worldview. She is appalled by the living conditions and actively encourages Alison to stand up to her husband's mistreatment.

Colonel Redfern is Alison's father, a retired military officer who spent the years from 1913 to 1947 stationed in India. He embodies the faded Edwardian era and admits that he feels out of place in modern, post-war England. Though he dislikes the way Jimmy treats his daughter, he possesses enough self-awareness to recognize his own tendency to passively sit on the fence during conflicts.

Hugh is Jimmy's old friend who previously shared his intense disdain for the middle class. He and Jimmy used to crash upper-class parties to take advantage of the free food and drinks, though Hugh eventually left to pursue his ideals elsewhere.

Hugh's Mother is a working-class woman who used her resources to buy the sweet stall for Jimmy and Cliff. She maintains a bond with Jimmy despite her own son's departure from the area.

Nigel is Alison's brother and a Member of Parliament. He represents everything Jimmy despises about the British class system, achieving success through family connections and social standing rather than intellect or merit.

Mrs. Redfern is Alison's mother, a formidable middle-class woman who fiercely opposed her daughter's marriage to Jimmy. She used aggressive tactics, including hiring private investigators, to try and prevent the union.

Mrs. Drury is the landlady of the building where Jimmy, Alison, and Cliff rent their attic flat. She occasionally serves as another target for Jimmy's generalized anger toward women and authority.