Mr Hobson is on a train journey back to Liverpool for the funeral of Jim Sweeney, an ex-work colleague.
He is accompanied by memories of teaching at Quarry Bank - the teenage John Lennon's alma mater - cheeky "doppelganger" school photography, and paradoxical visions of atheist Jim in heaven.
Teachers' nicknames, tragically unfortunate pupils, and "why me?" thoughts also flood Hobson's mind - underpinned by the optimistic words of Lennon's famous song "Imagine".