On the north east Norfolk coast, set in a field atop crumbling sandy cliffs on the edge of the village of Happisburgh, stands one of the UK’s most iconic lighthouses, built in 1791 following tragic loss of life at sea in a severe winter storm in 1789. 

Happisburgh is a village that lives under a constant existential threat. Each year, North Sea storms batter the fragile cliffs, a matter of yards from the nearest dwellings, gouging out small bays that, over time, broaden out as more of the imperilled land collapses into the sea. But despite nature’s brutal seasonal onslaught, Happisburgh feels like a community that is far from surrendering itself to the elements. Pretty houses are surrounded by well maintained gardens, playgrounds are maintained with a sense of pride and the red and white striped lighthouse stands defiantly, dutifully warning seafarers of the hidden dangers beneath the waters that one day will conquer its proud and impeccable Georgian structure. 

I visited Happisburgh one wild and moonless night in March 2022. A bitter north easterly wind howled through the night, carrying with it the sound of the waves relentlessly crashing on the beach, hidden in the darkness below the cliffs. Snow flurries blew in from time to time, occasionally turning to rain and then hail, before giving way to an inky black, star-studded sky. I spent the night shooting various compositions near to and far from the lighthouse, starting with Orion setting to the west and ending with Spring arch of the Milky Way, stealing the odd nap in my car while I could and drinking tea to warm up. To my delight, towards the end of the night, the faint red glow of an auroral display started to show up on camera to the north. 

This panoramic photograph was the key objective for the night’s adventures. For a few weeks in the Spring from the UK, it’s possible to photograph the majestic arch of the Milky Way, from its bright core low in the south south east to the delicate glow threading through the constellations of Perseus and Cassiopeia to the north.  The resulting images provide a wonderful sense of how our galaxy envelops us.  I positioned myself on the track leading to the lighthouse keepers’ cottages, with the majestic lighthouse centred under the arching Milky Way. To the left of the image, looking north, you can make out the faint red glow of the aurora, which can often be photographed from the Norfolk coast and began to intensify during the course of the night.