It’s been a long time coming, but at 7.00 pm on the 5th June, Hungry City finally saw the light of day. It was an emotional moment for me, arriving at La Fromagerie, Patricia Michelson’s wonderful political cheese shop in Marylebone, to see rows of bright new copies propped up by the window, waiting to be adopted by their new owners and taken home to read.

That was my last moment of calm: the rest of the evening passed in a whirlwind blur, trying (and failing) to speak to everyone, get through my speech without blubbing (which I nearly managed) and thank my wonderful editor Poppy Hampson (below, on the left) for all her amazing work on HC.

La Fromagerie did us proud with their customary panache, plying us with bucketsful of prosecco and some delicious nibbles (my favourite was a squidgy hot cheese bun), and a jolly good time was had by all.

I am reliably informed that book launches are very like weddings for those at their centre…I wish I could have had the evening several times over, in order to experience it properly. But it did feel wonderful to celebrate the arrival of Hungry City in such a fantastic place and in the company of so many great friends who have contributed so much to the book. The hard work of writing is over – now let the dialogue begin!!

ps…if you are a food-lover yet to discover the delights of La Fromagerie, you are in for a real treat! Just check out the cows on their website! La Fromagerie.