Plot: Richard Hannay is on the run from the police, who suspect him of murdering the woman found stabbed to death in his London flat. This story and his photograph are in many of the newspapers throughout Great Britain. In reality, the woman picked Hannay up at the Mr. Memory show, telling him that two men were trying to kill her in an effort to obtain information which would breach national security. Hannay is not only on the run from police but is also trying to find out the nature of the potential national security breach to clear his name. All he knows from the dead woman is that it has something to do with a man in a small town in Scotland, another man who has part of his pinky finger missing, and "The 39 Steps." On this perilous journey of discovery he's forced to take along a feisty young woman named Pamela, who is endlessly belligerent towards him despite her precarious situation.
Alternative Plot: While on vacation in London, Canadian Richard Hannay (Robert Donat) becomes embroiled in an international spy ring related to the mysterious "39 steps." Then he meets agent Annabella Smith (Lucie Mannheim), who is soon killed in his apartment. He must elude the police, who are hunting him for murder, while he tries to stop Professor Jordan (Godfrey Tearle) from sending secrets out of the country. Hannay is assisted by Pamela (Madeleine Carroll), an unwilling accomplice who discovers the truth.
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