Plot

Socially inept Miranda always gets into awkward situations; working in her joke shop with best friend Stevie, being hounded by her pushy mother, and around her crush Gary.

Miranda works in her joke shop with her best friend Stevie. She struggles when in social environments and no matter how hard she tries, she is always making a fool of herself, especially in front of her crush Gary. Plus her pushy mother, Penny, is forever trying to find her a suitable husband and turn her into a respectable lady.

Miranda (Miranda Hart) is 6 feet 1 inch (1.85 m) tall and gets called 'Sir' once too often. She has never fit in with her old boarding school friends, Tilly (Sally Phillips) and Fanny (Katy Wix), and finds social situations awkward, especially around men. She is a constant disappointment to her mother Penny (Patricia Hodge), who is desperate for her to get a proper job and a husband. Although Miranda owns and lives above her own joke shop, she lacks any real capacity for business, so it is managed by her childhood friend Stevie Sutton (Sarah Hadland). The restaurant next door is run by Clive (James Holmes), who also works as a waiter. He has employed a chef - Gary Preston (Tom Ellis), a university friend whom Miranda fancies. The various episodes revolve around this set-up.