Mr. and Mrs. Brown find a bear on Paddington Station. They name him "Paddington". Mr. Brown takes him to a buffet for some refreshments and things rapidly get out of hand.
Paddington arrives at 32 Windsor Gardens, the Brown's home. He meets their housekeeper, Mrs. Bird. After unpacking he is taken to the bathroom, where he creates a disastrous mess bathing and meets Jonathan, the Brown's son.
Paddington meets Mr. Gruber, who keeps an antique shop in Portobello Road. Mr. Gruber tells him about old masters and that they are sometimes discovered under modern paintings.
Mr. Brown decides to decorate the attic so that Paddington can have a room of his own. Paddington decides to complete the job himself and ends up papering over the door.
Paddington has a camera and wants to take a family picture of the Browns, but a bumble bee is after his marmalade sandwich and spoils the perfect shot.
Mr. and Mrs. Brown are ill in bed and with Mrs. Bird on holiday and their children at school, it's left to Paddington to look after them. Paddington decides to make a stew, but finishes up in a pickle.
Paddington gets a job looking after a barber's shop to help Mr. Gruber through a slow patch. Paddington's first customer is one of America's biggest antiques dealer and buys almost all of Mr. Gruber's stock.
Paddington, on his way for morning cocoa with Mr. Gruber, sees a poster advertising a funfair. Mr. Gruber tells him all about fairs and suggests he visits the fortune-teller first.
There's a surprise party for Paddington where it's revealed that his Aunt Lucy is turning 100 and they're sending Paddington back to Peru to celebrate her milestone. But is he going home for good?