Paignton Pier sits in the haze of a warm afternoon, the smell of chips and seaweed drifting along the promenade. Down on the sand, the little ice cream shack is busy—vanilla, rum and raisin, mint choc chip, a flake if you’re feeling fancy.

A seagull patrols nearby, waiting for its moment. One dropped cone and it’s off, wings flashing white against the blue. The tide’s slow, the air’s soft, and no one’s in a rush – just another summer day by the sea.