ISOLATION DIARIES PART 8: APPLAUSE

I was on another zoom call at the time, when someone reminded us that it was most definitely the moment.

So, I went down to my front door, and in unison with the rest of the street, we all started clapping.

There were warm-looking houses and hallways leaking light into the darkness. I realised I'd never seen inside. Each, like my own, poised with figures with long shadows, all applauding, (some cheering) as we raised a national, very British show of appreciation for our NHS workers: our tireless doctors, nurses, surgeons, attendants, and medical professionals.

They deserve it. They deserve a lot more too. They're risking their lives to keep our country safe, and thousands of people are still alive purely because these heroes went to work this week.

It was an emotional moment, standing there for a few minutes in the cold. The applause rippled, not just from our street, but from every street - from council blocks and avenues, from terraces and flats and bungalows and cottages, and of course from 10 Downing Street - the roar of appreciation from millions and millions of hands all clapping in unison simply to say thank you, from a single audience: the British people.

A firework popped in the sky. It was a sudden reminder of happier times. Somebody whooped above the applause and then we laughed together. We actually laughed!

I thought about Brexit and all those dreadful divisions we had: families torn apart over allegiances and ideals, friends no longer friends and social media a war zone for the opinionated. I thought about the political ripping apart we've suffered as the right wing have ploughed right and the left wing have swung left. I thought about the way those tentacles crept into our lives over the last few years and how fear and mistrust had been soaked into our culture. I thought about all of that, as we stood there at 8 o'clock on our doorsteps.

It was as though a powerful wave of hope had swept over us.

For the first time, maybe since the 2012 Olympics, maybe longer, this nation felt united in something - a common spirit celebrating the best of us, and coming together despite our differences to recognise it. It was, if anything can be these days, amazing - and sure, it was only a few minutes, but there it was. It was us, together.

I'm old-fashioned I know, but I do think these things make a difference. I wonder whether our country changed tonight, and whether we'll look back on 8 o'clock on March 26th, 2020. Will we see it as a moment? I hope so. And that's okay - these days, I think it's good to have hope.