<P> It is 1973 , the height of the Cold War . George Smiley , former senior official of Britain 's Secret Intelligence Service ( known as `` the Circus '' because its London office is at Cambridge Circus ) , has been living in unhappy retirement for a year after an operation in Czechoslovakia , codenamed Testify , ended in disaster with the capture and torture of agent Jim Prideaux . The failure resulted in the dismissals of Smiley and his superior , Control , the head of the Circus . Smiley is unexpectedly approached by Peter Guillam , his former protege at the Circus , and Under - Secretary Oliver Lacon , the Civil Service officer responsible for overseeing the Circus . At Lacon 's home they meet with Ricki Tarr , a Circus agent who had been missing for months and had been declared persona - non-grata upon suspicion of having defected to Moscow . Tarr tells them of the existence of a Soviet mole at the highest level of the Circus . The mole is codenamed Gerald and is handled by Moscow Centre 's agent , Polyakov , stationed at the Soviet embassy in London . Tarr tells them that when he obtained this information from a female Russian diplomat visiting Hong Kong and informed London , the woman was forcibly returned to Moscow . Tarr , realising someone in London had betrayed him , went on the run , eventually coming out to contact his former boss Guillam , the only person in the Circus he could trust . </P>
<P> It is 1973 , the height of the Cold War . George Smiley , former senior official of Britain 's Secret Intelligence Service ( known as `` the Circus '' because its London office is at Cambridge Circus ) , has been living in unhappy retirement for a year after an operation in Czechoslovakia , codenamed Testify , ended in disaster with the capture and torture of agent Jim Prideaux . The failure resulted in the dismissals of Smiley and his superior , Control , the head of the Circus . Smiley is unexpectedly approached by Peter Guillam , his former protege at the Circus , and Under - Secretary Oliver Lacon , the Civil Service officer responsible for overseeing the Circus . At Lacon 's home they meet with Ricki Tarr , a Circus agent who had been missing for months and had been declared persona - non-grata upon suspicion of having defected to Moscow . Tarr tells them of the existence of a Soviet mole at the highest level of the Circus . The mole is codenamed Gerald and is handled by Moscow Centre 's agent , Polyakov , stationed at the Soviet embassy in London . Tarr tells them that when he obtained this information from a female Russian diplomat visiting Hong Kong and informed London , the woman was forcibly returned to Moscow . Tarr , realising someone in London had betrayed him , went on the run , eventually coming out to contact his former boss Guillam , the only person in the Circus he could trust . </P>
when does tinker tailor soldier spy take place
when does tinker tailor soldier spy take place
1973
1973