Working on the West Pier from 1956 to 1970, Daphne Mitchell’s story evokes the atmosphere of the seaside in bygone times. Daphne recalls seaside shows that featured acts, such as the Great Omani, floating by on a bed of nails. She describes scenes with dolphins basking in the sea and aerial displays by the Red Arrows; all things that made the West Pier ‘the pier of piers.’ During the season, it was so hectic that Daphne comments ‘you didn’t know whether to laugh or cry’. In this account, the life of the West Pier is vividly brought to life for the modern reader, who today can only view a ghostly wreck that echoes to the seabirds’ sad songs. The subject is of particular relevance in view of the current debates that are taking place over the future of the West Pier.