Haworth West Yorkshire 1848. Branwell Brontë - unexhibited artist unacknowledged writer sacked railwayman disgraced tutor and spurned lover - finds himself unhappily back in Haworth Parsonage to face the crushing disappointment of his father and his three sisters whose own pseudonymous successes - allegedly kept secret from him - are only just becoming apparent. With his health failing rapidly his literary aspirations abandoned and his once loyal circle of friends shrinking fast Branwell lives in a world of secrets conspiracies and seemingly endless betrayals. To restore himself to a creative and fulfilling existence in the face of an increasingly claustrophobic environment he returns to the drugs alcohol and the morbid self-delusion which have already played such a large part in his unhappy life.