Nora is a 46-year-old widowed mother of four living in Enniscorthy, County Wexford. Faced with severe financial insecurity, she grudgingly returns to administrative work at the Gibney company to support her family. She intensely dislikes the suffocating, judgmental atmosphere of her small town and craves privacy to process her grief. Over time, she searches for new forms of self-expression, eventually finding solace and independence through vocal lessons.

Donal is Nora's 13-year-old son, who closely resembles his mother in temperament. He memorized his father's schedule while Maurice was alive and feels entirely unmoored by his passing, developing a stutter in response to the trauma. Finding spoken communication difficult, he retreats into an obsession with photography, taking pictures of televised events to document his inner sense of isolation.

Laurie is an eccentric, protective music teacher who lives somewhat outside the town's strict social parameters. A former nun who lived under Nazi occupation in France, she abandoned the convent at age fifty to start a new life focused on music. She teaches Nora how to sing, providing both practical instruction and crucial emotional support.

Sister Thomas is a highly influential nun who acts as an informal mediator within the Enniscorthy community. She possesses a legendary reputation, with townspeople circulating rumors about her past involvement in the Irish independence movement. She steps in to resolve social friction, intervening in Nora's workplace disputes and pushing people toward practical solutions.

Maurice was a local teacher and Nora's husband, whose painful final days and ultimate death define the family's current reality. His memory casts a long shadow over the Webster household, residing in his remaining clothes, old love letters, and the physical spaces he once occupied. He represents a profound loss that each family member processes differently.

Fiona is Nora's eldest child, studying to become a teacher. She rapidly matures following her father's death, quietly taking on adult responsibilities and masking her own sorrow to ease her mother's burden. She abandons her plans to stay in Dublin, returning home to work and contribute to the household finances.

Aine is Nora's teenage daughter, a highly capable student who moves to Dublin for university. She channels the anger and grief surrounding her father's death into fierce political activism. She becomes deeply invested in the civil rights movement and the escalating violence in Northern Ireland, adopting radical socialist viewpoints.

Conor is Nora's youngest child, an anxious and highly observant schoolboy. He keenly registers the silent tension in his household and fights frequently with Donal when left unsupervised. He faces bullying at his school until Nora intervenes to secure his position in his proper class.

Josie is Nora's aunt, a steady older woman who lives in the countryside. She cared for Donal and Conor while Maurice was dying, inadvertently causing the boys to associate her with their trauma. She offers practical support to Nora, eventually bringing her on a much-needed vacation to Spain.

Una is Nora's forty-year-old sister who lives nearby. She maintains a strained, polite dynamic with Nora, keeping her private life guarded to avoid judgment. She quietly dates and becomes engaged to a man from the golf club, revealing her happiness cautiously.

Catherine is another of Nora's sisters, married to a wealthy farmer named Mark. She acts as a fussy, restless host, prompting Nora to deliberately test her patience out of quiet resentment. Their relationship consists of polite microaggressions and mutual incomprehension.

Jim is Maurice's brother and Nora's brother-in-law. A veteran of the War of Independence who survived internment, he understands literal and figurative confinement. Having no children of his own, he acts as a surrogate father to Nora's kids, slipping Nora cash to help the family survive.

Margaret is Jim's wife, a professional woman who earns a higher salary than her husband. She uses her disposable income to support Nora's children, funding Aine's Latin classes and helping set up Donal's darkroom.

Francie is the acrimonious office manager at the Gibney firm. Years ago, Nora bullied and ignored her when they worked together; now, Francie wields her authority like a petty tyrant. She feuds constantly with Elizabeth Gibney and tries to punish Nora through difficult bookkeeping tests.

Elizabeth is the young, wealthy daughter of William and Peggy Gibney. She treats her office job superficially, spending her time chatting on the phone about her romantic life in Dublin. She wages a passive-aggressive war against Francie Kavanagh primarily for her own amusement.

Peggy is William Gibney's wife, a woman from a modest background who married into wealth after a scandalous early pregnancy. She now acts with self-conscious grandeur to compensate for her past, residing in a luxurious house but remaining hyper-aware of the town's judgment.

William is the heir who recently inherited the Gibney family business. Viewed as a fool during his school days, his wealth now commands respect in the town. He offers Nora a charitable position out of respect for her late husband.

Phyllis is a confident, somewhat chaotic local woman who operates a Guinness-sponsored pub quiz. She drinks heavily, possesses a high-minded attitude regarding local patrons, and drags Nora into a disastrous public singing performance. She proves crucial in connecting Nora with Laurie O'Keefe.

Mick is a truck driver for the Gibney firm who actively follows the political strife in Northern Ireland. He orchestrates a secret initiative to unionize the company's staff, risking his job to fight for fair wages.

Frank is the local choirmaster in Wexford. He operates with rigid authority and treats newcomers with open disdain, subjecting Nora to an insulting and dismissive audition that provokes Laurie's intense anger.

Seamus is Una's partner and eventual fiancé. He is a nervous but amiable man who spends his time at the local golf club. He attempts to bond with Nora's sons by offering well-meaning but clunky advice regarding Donal's photography.

Paul is Fiona's boyfriend, a polite young man who briefly integrates into the Webster household. He assists the family during a crisis by traveling to Dublin to help search for Aine during a period of political unrest.

Mark is Catherine's husband, a successful farmer who lives comfortably in the countryside. His wealth creates a silent contrast with Nora's precarious financial situation during family visits.

Billy is Laurie's second husband. Recognizing his wife's intense passion for music despite not sharing it himself, he constructed a custom soundproof room so she could teach vocal lessons without disturbing the household.

Nancy is an old acquaintance of Nora who co-runs a traveling pub quiz sponsored by Guinness. When she cannot attend an event in Blackwater, she recruits Nora to fill in and manage the scoring.