The teacher drew shapes and suggested they should imagine them as hedges around a field. From the lengths of the hedges and the angles between them, you could work out the area of grass in the field. If that was too complicated, you could draw in imaginary hedges to divide the field into shapes that were simpler to calculate, then add them up.

By the end of the lesson, Kath understood that geometry was simple if you just applied common sense. Degrees were just a way of measuring angles; lines were just like the boundaries of something. You could even add speed to use them to calculate less tangible things like, as Mark said, wind direction, or the lift applied to an aeroplane’s wings. Her teacher returned the essay about Silas Marner with a big ‘A’ written in red at the bottom, alongside the words, ‘Excellent work’. And for her maths homework she was frequently awarded eight or even ten out of ten.

‘Turns out we were right, Kathleen Motts,’ the teacher said.

‘Right, miss?’

‘You’re a bright kid, if only you’d start believing in yourself.’

The only other excitement in the town that autumn was the clandestine visits of King Edward to his mistress, who was reputed to be staying in a grand house on Undercliff Road. It was all supposed to be terribly confidential, although in a place like Felixstowe few secrets passed unnoticed or unremarked upon, even if they were only spoken about in hushed tones.

That October, all became clear. Mrs Wallis Simpson was granted a divorce from Mr Simpson at Ipswich Crown Court, and the press speculated that she and the King were planning to get married, if only they could persuade the authorities to turn a blind eye to the fact that she was a divorcee. For a few brief weeks reporters and photographers crowded the town, and Felixstowe was in the national headlines: CONSTITUTIONAL CRISIS LOOMS AFTER WALLIS DIVORCE, they screamed.

The day before Kath’s maths exam resit, she and Joan joined a large crowd at the Town Hall to hear the mayor’s announcement that King Edward had abdicated, and his brother George was to become king instead. She couldn’t understand why everyone cheered – it seemed a tragedy that the man had been forced to resign just because he’d fallen in love with someone who had committed the supposedly heinous crime of being a divorcee.

Just before Christmas, Kath learned that she had passed all of her exams. To celebrate, Pa treated the whole family to a meal at the Alexandra Cafe. This was their favourite place for special occasions; the tables were formally laid with starched white cloths and silver cutlery, the service was attentive, the food plain but plentiful and the views over South Beach were spectacular.

‘But we have those at home every Friday,’ her mother chided when she chose fish and chips.