The Go-Between

The Go-Between

Year: 1971

Runtime: 116 mins

Language: English

Director: Joseph Losey

RomanceDramaMoving relationship storiesPassion and romanceHeartbreaking and moving family drama

British teenager Leo Colston spends a summer in the countryside, where he becomes infatuated with the young aristocrat Marian. To win her favor, he acts as her messenger, delivering secret love letters to the handsome neighboring farmer Ted Burgess, thrusting himself into a delicate liaison between the upper class and the working class.

Warning: spoilers below!

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Timeline – The Go-Between (1971)

Trace every key event in The Go-Between (1971) with our detailed, chronological timeline. Perfect for unpacking nonlinear stories, spotting hidden connections, and understanding how each scene builds toward the film’s climax. Whether you're revisiting or decoding for the first time, this timeline gives you the full picture.

1

Leo arrives at Brandham Hall

Twelve-year-old Leo Colston travels to Brandham Hall for a summer stay with his wealthy school friend Marcus Maudsley. He feels out of place among the aristocracy, even as Marian and other Maudsleys shower him with welcome and new clothes.

1900, summer Brandham Hall, Norfolk
2

Marcus falls ill and is quarantined

Marcus contracts measles and must quarantine in his bedroom, shifting the social balance of the house. Leo is kept busy entertaining himself while the illness isolates the family, and Marian's attentions become even more pointed toward him.

1900, early summer Brandham Hall
3

Leo injures himself and meets Ted

While exploring the estate, Leo injures his shoulder in a haystack accident. Ted Burgess, a tenant farmer, tends to his injuries and asks Leo to deliver a letter to Marian in return.

1900, late spring Estate grounds near Brandham Hall
4

The secret messages begin

Leo becomes the regular messenger between Marian and Ted, unwittingly enabling their clandestine affair. He believes the notes are harmless messages between friends rather than romantic letters.

1900, summer Brandham Hall estate
5

Marian's engagement to Hugh is announced

Marian is courted by Hugh, Viscount Trimingham, and her engagement becomes public news. Leo feels a wash of relief, hoping his role as go-between might end.

1900, summer Brandham Hall
6

Leo discovers the love letter

Leo glimpses one of Marian's letters and realizes it is a love note between Marian and Ted. The revelation shatters his innocent assumption about the arrangement and unsettles him deeply.

1900, summer Brandham Hall
7

Marian and Ted carry on; Leo's loyalty tested

Despite Marian's engagement to Hugh, she and Ted continue their affair and keep using Leo as a go-between. Leo grows anxious and confused, feeling used and inferior to the adults' intrigue.

1900, summer Brandham Hall estate
8

Birthday expectations and a forbidden letter

As Leo's thirteenth birthday approaches during a record heatwave, Marian asks him to deliver another letter to Ted. He refuses, and Madeleine, Marian's mother, notices their exchange and presses Leo to reveal the truth. Marian lies about the letter's destination.

1900, heatwave on 13th birthday Brandham Hall
9

The birthday dinner and the barn discovery

That evening's birthday dinner is interrupted by a thunderstorm as family members await Marian. Madeleine takes Leo to Ted's farm, where Marian and Ted are found having sex in the barn. The moment shocks Leo and changes how he understands the adults around him.

1900, birthday evening Ted's farm, Norfolk
10

Ted's suicide

In the wake of the discovery, Ted Burgess shoots himself in the farmhouse kitchen. The tragedy casts a long shadow over Leo, who has become entangled in a world of secrecy and desire.

1900, same night Ted's farmhouse, Norfolk
11

Fifty years later: Leo returns

Half a century passes and Leo returns to Brandham Hall a jaded, emotionally closed man. The voyage through memory has left him with a diminished imagination and an inability to form close relationships.

1950s Brandham Hall
12

Marian's later life and the past revealed

Now elderly, Marian is the Dowager Lady Trimingham and lives in her former nanny's cottage. Leo learns that she married Hugh as planned and bore Ted's son; Hugh later acknowledged the boy as his own before dying in 1910.

1950s Nanny's cottage near Brandham Hall
13

The grandson and Marian's longing to repair ties

Marian's grandson remains estranged due to the past scandal, and Marian asks Leo to help repair the relationship. She reveals that she truly loved Ted and wants to make amends with her family.

1950s Marian's cottage / Brandham Hall vicinity
14

Leo's final errand

Leo prepares to carry the final errand for Marian, intending to tell her grandson that she did truly love Ted. He leaves Brandham Hall to complete the last act that binds past and present.

1950s Brandham Hall vicinity

Last Updated: October 09, 2025 at 09:26

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