What Is The Wicker Tree About?
The premise of The Wicker Tree in 299 words, with nothing given away. The full story follows below.
In the rolling mist of the Scottish Lowlands, two devout travelers trade the wide, sun‑baked plains of Texas for a land of stone cottages and ancient folklore. Beth Boothby, a celebrated gospel singer whose voice has carried sermons across the American heartland, and her steady‑hand partner Steve Thompson, a cowboy whose faith is as unyielding as his rodeo reins, leave behind familiar crowds to answer a call that promises souls in need. Their mission, sanctioned by a charismatic reverend, is simple on the surface: go door‑to‑door, share the gospel, and plant the seeds of salvation wherever they tread.
Their arrival in Scotland is met with an unexpected blend of suspicion and curiosity. The remote village of Tressock, perched near an ancient border and overseen by the austere Sir Lachlan Morrison, exudes a quiet dignity that hints at centuries of tradition. The villagers, initially wary of the outsiders’ bright hymns and polished pamphlets, soon find themselves drawn into a festive atmosphere that crowns the newcomers with unexpected honor. The juxtaposition of modern evangelical zeal against a backdrop of time‑worn customs creates a palpable tension, as the couple navigates the subtle dance between reverence and cultural dissonance.
The film sways between the warm glow of heartfelt music and the cool shadows of lingering myth, crafting a tone that feels both reverent and unsettling. As Beth and Steve become entangled in the village’s seasonal celebrations, they are invited to participate in rites that echo deeper, older beliefs. The promise of community and belonging is tempered by an undercurrent that suggests every act of devotion may carry a hidden price. Viewers are left to wonder how far faith can stretch when confronted with the weight of ancient sacrifice, and whether the duo’s journey will illuminate new horizons or lead them into uncharted darkness.
What Happens in The Wicker Tree?
The complete story of The Wicker Tree, from the first scene to the last, in 477 words (about 2 minutes). Spoilers throughout.
Spoilers ahead
Beth Boothby [Brittania Nicol] is a successful born-again evangelical pop singer from Texas. She and her fiancé Steve Thomson [Henry Garrett] both wear purity rings and belong to a group known as the Cowboys in Christ, who travel to heathen areas of the world to preach Christianity. The Reverend Moriarty sends them off to Glasgow, hoping to save some souls there, but they are met with a very negative reception as nobody accepts their pamphlets. They are approached by Sir Lachlan Morrison [Graham McTavish], the laird of the small village of Tressock in the Scottish Lowlands, and his wife Delia Morrison [Jacqueline Leonard], who invite them back with them to preach. They actually intend them for a more central part in Tressock’s May Day celebration.
The villagers of Tressock have become infertile after the construction of Sir Lachlan’s nuclear power plant, a detail that hangs over every interaction with the locals. While out riding a horse, Steve Thomson [Henry Garrett] has sex with female villager Lolly [Honeysuckle Weeks], whom he finds bathing nude in a spring. Steve regrets his actions and wants to return home. During a flashback Sir Lachlan remembers a mentor from his youth, a memory that hints at the deeper beliefs driving the village’s modern ritual life. Meanwhile, a detective named Orlando is sent to Tressock, posing as the local police officer to secretly investigate reports of a pagan cult. After having sex with Lolly on multiple occasions, Orlando discovers that the people of the village worship the ancient Celtic goddess Sulis.
Beth and Steve decide to begin their preaching at Tressock’s May Day celebrations. To impress the locals, they agree to become the local Queen of the May and the Laddie for the festival, not realizing the consequences of this decision. Steve is chased by villagers on horseback as part of a ritual and is torn apart by them at its completion. Back in Sir Lachlan’s house, the Morrisons’ butler Beame [Clive Russell] attempts to sedate Beth to prepare her for her role as the May Queen. He had tried this the night before, but the spiked milk killed the Morrison’s cat. Beth attacks Beame and flees, but is captured in town. After discovering Steve’s death, Beth confronts Sir Lachlan at the wicker tree. She [Beth Boothby] pushes Lachlan into the structure and sets it on fire, killing him.
Beth tries to escape from Tressock with the help of one of the few children left in the village. She is captured and later killed. Her body is preserved and put on display in a room with the previous May Queens. Lolly gives birth to Steve’s child and brings a new generation to Tressock for the first time in years. Delia Morrison [Jacqueline Leonard] prays to the setting sun for the gods to find more men to bring to Tressock to sire more children.
The Wicker Tree Timeline: Every Key Event in Order
12 key events in the order they happen, from “Mission to Glasgow ends in rejection” to “Birth of a new generation; prayers for more men”. 12 events name a place, across 12 locations.
- 1
Mission to Glasgow ends in rejection
Beth and Steve travel to Glasgow to preach as part of their evangelical mission, but they meet hostility and indifference from the locals. They struggle to gain any foothold with pamphlets and save souls, underscoring the cultural clash they face. Their missionary effort pivots when the Morrisons invite them to Tressock, hinting at a new audience with different beliefs.
When:Early in the mission Where:Glasgow, Scotland
- 2
Invitation to Tressock
Sir Lachlan Morrison and his wife Delia invite Beth and Steve back to preach in the Scottish village of Tressock, hoping to leverage their May Day celebration. The locals are wary, given the village infertility tied to Sir Lachlan's nuclear plant. Beth and Steve agree to take on roles as May Queen and Laddie to win over the villagers.
When:Lead-up to May Day Where:Tressock, Scottish Lowlands
- 3
Lachlan's memory foreshadows ritual beliefs
In a flashback, Sir Lachlan recalls a mentor from his youth, a memory that hints at the occult beliefs underpinning the village rituals. This moment establishes the deeper motivations behind Tressock's pagan practices. The memory foreshadows the violence and control that will frame Beth and Steve's visit.
When:Flashback Where:Lachlan's memory / Sir Lachlan's residence
- 4
Detective Orlando arrives undercover
A detective named Orlando is sent to Tressock pretending to be a local police officer to investigate reports of a pagan cult. He becomes entwined by the villagers' secret worship of the Celtic goddess Sulis. His presence adds a modern investigative angle to the fragile peace in the village.
When:During the investigation Where:Tressock, Scotland
- 5
Steve's affair with Lolly
Steve has sex with Lolly, a local villager, while she bathes nude in a spring. He regrets the affair and expresses a desire to return home, destabilizing his marriage and mission. The act intensifies the village's suspicion and foreshadows the coming reckoning.
When:Before May Day Where:Lolly's spring near Tressock
- 6
May Day roles agreed
Beth and Steve decide to participate in the May Day celebration as May Queen and Laddie to impress the villagers. They underestimate the consequences of stepping into the village's sacred ritual. The decision binds them to a deadly tradition that casts a shadow over their mission.
When:May Day eve Where:Tressock May Day preparations
- 7
Beame's attempt to sedate Beth
Beame, the Morrison household's butler, attempts to sedate Beth to prepare her for her May Queen role. Earlier he had drugged a cat with spike milk, revealing a brutal method of control. Beth fights back when the plan is revealed.
When:Night before May Day Where:Lachlan's house
- 8
Steve pursued during the ritual
During the May Day ritual, Steve is chased by villagers on horseback as part of their fertility rite. The mob's brutal act culminates with Steve being torn apart, marking a devastating turning point for Beth and the village. The ritual's violence exposes the darker underbelly of the celebration.
When:May Day ceremony Where:Outside Tressock, during May Day
- 9
Beth's escape attempt and confrontation with Lachlan
After discovering Steve's death, Beth escapes briefly but is captured again. She confronts Sir Lachlan at the wicker tree, challenging the village's brutal tradition. The moment sets the stage for the climactic act of the ritual.
When:Following Steve's death Where:Wicker tree vicinity, Tressock
- 10
Lachlan dies at the wicker tree
Beth pushes Lachlan into the wicker structure and sets it on fire, killing him and symbolically burning away the local patriarchal control. The violent act exposes the ritual's true nature to the remaining villagers. The wicker tree becomes a focal point of the May Day lore.
When:Climax Where:Wicker tree, Tressock
- 11
Beth's capture and death; May Queens displayed
Beth is captured while trying to flee with the few children left in the village and is killed. Her body is preserved and placed on display in a room with the previous May Queens. The ritual's legacy continues through the village's tradition.
When:After Beth's death Where:Tressock, May Queen's room
- 12
Birth of a new generation; prayers for more men
Lolly gives birth to Steve's child, bringing a new generation to Tressock after years of infertility. Delia Morrison prays to the setting sun for the gods to find more men to sire additional children. The cycle of ritual fertility continues as the village looks to the future.
When:Post May Day Where:Tressock
Who Are the Main Characters in The Wicker Tree?
6 characters, among them Beth Boothby (Brittania Nicol), Steve Thomson (Henry Garrett) and Sir Lachlan Morrison (Graham McTavish): who each one is and the part they play in the story. Every profile links to the actor’s page.
- BB
Beth Boothby (Brittania Nicol)
Played by Brittania Nicol
Beth is a confident, born-again evangelical pop singer from Texas who travels with Steve to preach Christianity. Her zeal drives her to lead the May Day plan, but she becomes entangled in the village’s dangerous rites. Her actions culminate in a confrontation at the wicker tree and a brutal end.
- 🎤 Pop Star
- ✝️ Faith
- 🔥 Zeal
-
Steve Thomson (Henry Garrett)
Played by Henry Garrett
Steve is Beth’s fiancé and a member of the Cowboys in Christ who preaches to the locals. He engages in a sexual encounter with Lolly, regrets his actions, and ultimately wants to return home, complicating the mission and the village’s plans.
- 🎯 Missionary
- 💔 Infidelity
- 🧭 Conflict
-
Sir Lachlan Morrison (Graham McTavish)
Played by Graham McTavish
Laird of the village of Tressock, Lachlan exerts patriarchal influence over ritual life. A memory of a mentor hints at the deeper beliefs driving the community’s modern rites, and he remains a central, deadly force in the events.
- 👑 Leader
- 🗝️ Power
- 🧭 Secret Beliefs
- LD
Lady Delia Morrison (Jacqueline Leonard)
Played by Jacqueline Leonard
Delia is Lachlan’s wife who participates in the village’s ritual life and prays to the setting sun for the gods to bring more men to sire children. She is a steady supporter of the social order and the ritual cycle.
- 👰 Matriarch
- ✨ Ritualist
- 🧭 Strategist
- L(
Lolly (Honeysuckle Weeks)
Played by Honeysuckle Weeks
Lolly is a local villager who becomes involved with Steve, bearing the burden of the village’s fertility hopes and the affair’s fallout. She represents the younger generation drawn into the ritual world and its consequences.
- 🌸 Village Youth
- 💘 Secret Affection
- 👶 Legacy
- B(
Beame (Clive Russell)
Played by Clive Russell
Beame is the Morrison household’s butler, a quiet, calculating figure who attempts to sedate Beth and orchestrate events from behind the scenes. He is closely tied to the ritual machinery and the village’s control mechanisms.
- 🗝️ Servant
- 🧭 Manipulator
- 🗡️ Enforcer
Where and When Is The Wicker Tree Set?
The Wicker Tree is set in Tressock, Scottish Lowlands and Glasgow (Contemporary). Here is why the time and place matter to the story.
When
Contemporary
The events unfold in a modern-day setting in the Scottish countryside. The villagers’ ritual life sits alongside modern infrastructure, notably the nuclear plant. The May Day festival anchors social life amid a blend of ancient myth and present-day concerns.
Where
Tressock, Scottish Lowlands, Glasgow
Tressock is a small village in the Scottish Lowlands ruled by Sir Lachlan Morrison. The community lives under the shadow of a recently constructed nuclear power plant, which affects fertility and daily life. Glasgow figures into the story as the initial destination for the missionaries before they return to Tressock for the May Day rites.
- 🌄 Rural village
- ⚡ Nuclear facility
- 🗺️ Scottish locale
What Are the Themes of The Wicker Tree?
4 ideas the story keeps returning to, among them Religious Conflict, Power & Ritual Control and Sexuality & Betrayal.
-
01
Religious Conflict
Beth and Steve’s evangelical mission collides with the village’s Celtic worship, turning faith into a tool of control. The Morison family and Beame manipulate beliefs to shepherd the community and justify coercive rites. The May Day spectacle becomes a battleground where faith, power, and survival clash.
-
02
Power & Ritual Control
The village’s elite leaders orchestrate ritual life to maintain dominance over Tressock. The wicker tree and May Queen ceremony function as instruments of social control and communal identity. Belief becomes a mechanism to govern bodies, loyalties, and futures.
-
03
Sexuality & Betrayal
Sexual encounters drive the plot: Steve’s affair with Lolly and the ensuing emotional entanglements. Desire and infidelity intersect with ritual power, exposing vulnerabilities in both visitors and villagers. These dynamics escalate tension toward tragedy.
-
04
Destruction & Sacrifice
Beth’s resistance leads to the wicker structure’s destruction and the death of Sir Lachlan. The ritual’s sacrifices mirror the community’s fertility obsessions and desperation. The cycle of birth and death continues as the village endures.
What Kind of Film Is The Wicker Tree?
Dark in tone, with steady pacing and a moderate story, going by the plot summary.
- Tone
- Dark
- Pacing
- Steady
- Story
- Moderate
- Intensity
- High
- Ending
- Bleak
A sinister and steadily-paced folk horror film that builds an oppressive sense of dread as naive outsiders are lured into a pagan community's deadly scheme for survival.
- sinister
- anxious
- ominous
- oppressive
- ritualistic
- unsettling
- religious fanaticism
- pagan cult
- fertility ritual
- cultural clash
Content notes: human sacrifice, ritualistic violence, graphic death, sexual coercion, cult indoctrination.
Quiz
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