Cut off from the mainland and surrounded by an unforgiving sea, Lankytown has grown upwards rather than outwards.

Buildings crowd against buildings. Streets climb between them. Rooftops overlap, alleyways narrow and the town rises towards the Clocktower that watches over everything below.

There is nowhere quite like Lankytown — and very few ways out.

Standing above the town, Lankytown’s Clocktower can be seen from almost everywhere on the island.

Its hands haven’t moved in generations.

They point, as they always have, to eight.

Once one of Lankytown’s grandest buildings, the Theatre has entertained generations of islanders.

Like much of the town, however, there are parts of its history that its residents would rather leave behind the curtain.

Surrounded by grand Victorian buildings and overlooked by the imposing Town Hall, the cobbled square stands at the civic heart of Lankytown. A place of public gatherings, grand announcements and occasional controversy, its peaceful appearance belies some of the more troubling events that have unfolded upon its ancient stones.

If you want to know what’s happening in Lankytown, there’s always someone at the Drip-Inn who knows. Whether they’ll tell you the truth, or anything at all, is quite another matter.

Once a beautifully maintained retreat for Lankytown’s more distinguished residents, the Victorian Park has long since surrendered its carefully tended gardens to the passage of time. Where elegant pathways and colourful flowerbeds once welcomed leisurely afternoon strolls, an altogether less inviting landscape now awaits.

At the heart of Lankytown, the bustling High Street is alive with the clatter of trams, the chatter of shoppers and the everyday comings and goings of its residents. From colourful shopfronts to winding cobbled streets, life here carries on much as it always has — although appearances, as elsewhere in Lankytown, can be rather deceiving.

Almost everyone who comes to Lankytown arrives by sea.

And almost everyone who leaves does the same.

Two piers reach from the island towards the world beyond, their gas lamps marking the way home after dark.

On brighter days, Lankytown’s sandy beach becomes a favourite gathering place for families seeking a little fresh sea air. Children paddle in the shallows and build sandcastles, while their elders enjoy a leisurely afternoon beneath the towering buildings that rise from the island’s shores.

SURROUNDED

The sea protects Lankytown from the outside world.

Or perhaps the outside world from Lankytown.

Lankytown has grown layer upon layer, generation upon generation. Victorian grandeur crowds against working homes, shops, alleys and forgotten spaces as the town climbs towards its highest point.