It has been an afternoon which has simply reinforced my now deep conviction that London is the greatest, most awesome city on earth. A couple of days ago, I of course heard that the annual pride march was this weekend, so I thought I would head up there to check it out. You know how fascinated I am by such big cultural events. To be honest, as I headed into central London this morning, I had my political head on, wondering how much evidence I might find of the kind of cultural intrusion or usurpation I often get so wound up about. However, as soon as I got to the pavement of Piccadilly, it became clear that such concerns were totally and utterly irrelevant. If what I saw today was about anything, it was about inclusion and the celebration of diversity; politics had nothing to do with it.

Having said that, the march started slightly late apparently due to some sort of protest, but when it got going I was almost instantly overwhelmed by the energy and vibrancy of what I was watching. Thousands of people, all cheering and whooping, but above all expressing love for one another. The procession was formed of groups of people representing organisations around London. There was a vast array, but they all had an LGBT aspect, giving the afternoon a feeling of variety and diversity, but also solidarity and unity. What better metaphor could there be for London as a whole?

Apart from the last time I went to Pride, I have never seen anything like it: the feelings of warmth, compassion and friendliness were palpable. As usual I got chatting with a few people and made a few friends. One man even gave me a fabulous rainbow cowboy hat, completely at random! At about four I headed home, but as I rode the Elizabeth line back, covered in rainbows and stickers, I decided that today certainly wouldn’t be my last Pride.