A bit obvious . . .

. . . but it had to be. I can’t remember a day when we have had so much rain, and such heavy rain. With brief moments of sunshine in between downpours, it has been raining all day. Quite spectacular really. And for me much preferable to the high temperatures they have in southern Europe at the moment.

The First Night of the Proms last night was wonderful. Many highlights, particularly the enthusiasm of the conductor Dalia Stasevska, but there was a special moment that made me think. A beautiful orchestral study was played, composed by Ukrainian composer Bohdana Frolyak and called ‘Let there be Light’, the message being - light must defeat darkness. At the end there was silence and then rapturous applause, during which the camera caught the composer, who was present, as she smiled through tears at the conductor, herself of Ukrainian heritage. When someone is going all out to destroy your culture . . .