I felt as if I was Britain’s biggest cynic when it came to the Olympic Opening Ceremony. I was ready to tune in and watch through my fingers as Danny Boyle portrayed Britain in a way that gave us cause to laugh at ourselves once again, whilst the rest of the world looked on bemused and unimpressed.

to the right of her sister is Lauren Aitken on her way to the world’s best kept secret

I knew that London would produce the least spectacular Ceremony yet. Whilst Bejing were more than happy to beat their chest and astound the world with their display of strength and power, London would be ‘oh-so-careful’ not to offend anyone or anything and show ourselves as everyone’s best friend. It wouldn’t be cool it would be cheesy and we would all be left red faced and cringing, wondering how they could get it so wrong and feeling unfairly represented as a nation.

I was certain that I would be able to come up with a superior spectacle within five minutes of the lighting of the cauldron.

Therefore; when my sister announced that she had been awarded tickets to the Opening Ceremony Rehearsals I found it comforting. I felt that if I could preview the thing then I would be better prepared for the embarrassment of the Friday broadcast.

However, what I was not prepared for was the atmosphere that had consumed London. Upon entering the Olympic Park itself we were enveloped by the buzz that seemed built-in to every pore of the Park.

My sister handed out our passes and as we made our way through the Park we noted that no one seemed to have the same passes as us. People were asking us what they were for and as far as my sister knew they were to secure a complimentary snack box, much to my greedy delight.

We saw a small crowd of people also wearing our passes and upon joining them it became apparent that we were part of the rehearsal itself. The volunteers were rehearsing for the arrival of the world’s dignitaries and VIP’s. For the purpose of the rehearsal; we were those VIP’s.

We were escorted through a hospitality lounge and out to our seats; the best seats in the house. Being the wannabe that I am I was loving this and I wondered whose seat I would be warming for Friday.

As soon as I clapped eyes on the pleasant country scene in the centre of the stadium I began to get an unexpected feeling; excitement. Apparently I had been affected with Olympic Fever and immediately found myself thumbing through a program in order to familiarize myself with the Team GB athletes. Was it possible that the Opening Ceremony had already done its job? I was…. shock horror, eagerly anticipating the London 2012 Olympics. In fact, I couldn’t wait.

With this new found love and respect for what I was now a part of; I settled in for my sneak preview of the greatest show on earth.

The large screens in the Stadium displayed ‘#savethesurprise’ throughout the evening. I felt as if I was part of one of the biggest secrets in the world and was sure I would be lynched by the crowd if I was caught Tweeting.

As you all know by now; Danny Boyle did us proud. From James Bond and Her Majesty to the British music montage there really was something for everyone. The Great in Great Britain was undoubtedly emphasised. Yeah, maybe they could’ve left McCartney out of this one but everyone knows the words to ‘Hey Jude’ and with that he proved why he should be up there.

As I left the Park I was instilled with a sense of pride and couldn’t wait to watch it all again on Friday. I was still dogged by fears about Friday night but this time I was more concerned about whether the world would get a good enough view of the whole thing. I certainly had a good view and it is something I will never forget.