Brunel, a French
National Police detective on an exchange scheme in
London, is assigned to investigate the apparent murder of novelist John Morlar. As they examine the crime scene, Brunel discovers the victim is still alive in spite of his severe head injuries and has him rushed to hospital. With the help of Morlar's journals and Dr Zonfeld, a
psychiatrist Morlar was consulting, Brunel reconstructs Morlar's life. Seen in
flashback, it is filled with seemingly inexplicable catastrophes and the sudden deaths of people he disliked or who grievously offended him. Morlar has become convinced that, consciously or unconsciously, he himself willed the things to happen. He had become even more convinced when a supposed psychic examined his hands, became greatly unsettled at what he foresaw, and refunded Morlar's fee. Zonfeld scoffs at this explanation, asking Morlar if he seriously believes in
palmistry as a means of predicting the future. As flashbacks continue, it becomes shown that Morlar has powerful
telekinetic abilities. Morlar's earlier legal career is seen to have halted after a courtroom defence speech that reveals his disgust at the world and offends the judge resulting in a lengthy imprisonment for his client. He subconsciously curses the judge, who soon after dies of a heart attack with a look of unaccountable terror. Later, he proves to Zonfeld that he is the instrument of disaster when, with her watching, he forces a
jumbo airliner to crash into a London office tower, killing everyone on board. Brunel eventually concludes that Zonfeld has attempted to kill Morlar in order to stop him causing more disasters, the most recent, at the time that he was attacked, involving American astronauts on a space mission to the moon that is being widely broadcast in the media. Failing to get him to stop, she had bashed in Morlar's skull with a blunt object and left him for dead. Brunel confronts her and she admits trying to kill Morlar. Brunel does not arrest her right away, partly because he is also becoming convinced of Morlar's telekinetic powers. Later, Brunel returns to Zonfeld's office, but he discovers she has committed suicide, having left a note apologizing to him for leaving such a mess to deal with. From his hospital bed in a
vegetative state Morlar manages to bring down a cathedral on the "unworthy heads" of a VIP congregation attending a
royal fundraising event for the crumbling building's restoration. Brunel races to the hospital and tries to kill Morlar by ripping out all tubes that are keeping him
alive to end the destruction, just as Zonfeld had, but he, too, is unsuccessful. Morlar, who inexplicably remains alive, writes on a pad the name of his next target:
Windscale nuclear power station. ==Cast==