Today is again pleasant.

Yesterday, the boiler man came to instal a new boiler, so I was stuck at home at the Old Rectory.

I decided to sort through my wardrobe. I found some glittery stuff from the 80s, my disco days in Oz. I doubt I shall ever don them again, unless we are asked to some 80s themed party.

Today I am off to the South Coast to catch up with some friends who are at a Church of England festival. Hugo is camping there with his cousin. They left on Friday night with the car ‘choc a bloc’ full.

The Archbishop of Canterbury is attending. He is godfather to my eldest nephew. He goes way back with Geoff’s brother, Jono, from their Paris days. Jono was the curate of St Michael’s Anglican Church on the Rue Saint-Honore, tucked behind the British Embassy. Later he was in Versailles with his wife, Sue, and the rest of the family.

I am particularly looking forward to catching up with Mrs California, who I had dinner with the other night at the Wolseley restaurant. Mr and Mrs California have made so many of my dreams come true since I met them 20 years ago. I think of them as the ‘dream makers’, certainly ‘party makers’, as they throw the best parties you can dream of. They left London to return to the States in 2008, and they set up home in Pacific Palisades, not far from Santa Monica, with their children. Before they left they had a going away party, and you had to go as a film or music star. I went as Madonna, who I grew up with really. We are about the same age.

When Dad died, Mrs California suggested I pop over to Los Angeles to see her. It was heading into winter in England, so I jumped at the chance. One of the surprises she organised was to go to the television talk show, The Ellen show. Ellen Degeneres is huge in America. She hosted the Oscars. Mrs California is always working out what she thinks you would love to do, and then she makes it come happen.

When you finally reach your seats at the studio, there is a DJ who whips you up into a frenzy for about an hour before the show starts. There are so many endorphins rushing around your body, that you are genuinely bursting out of your skin with excitement when Ellen finally appears.

Just before the show began, the producer appeared to explain the rules: that we had to be dancing and jumping and clapping when Ellen walked out onto the stage. He would tell us to keep going by moving his hands up and down with his palms to the ceiling. As soon as he turned his hands face down to the ground we had to shut up and be still.

And this would be the form during the various breaks in the show. You had to dance between the breaks so the energy didn’t lag, and then clap and jump and dance hysterically when Ellen started again.

Ellen began the show by dancing up and down the two aisles, but she also dances down one row connecting the two aisles. We were in that row. But we were told that we could not touch her as she passed by. If you watch the show no one ever touches her. I was just a little bit tempted to touch her.

We taped the first show that had someone from Modern Family, Cam. Then Ellen explained that we were going to pretend it was a different day and tape a second show. She said it would be worth it. That there was a very special guest.

She has fantastic guests: movie stars, music stars, tv stars. They all clamour to be on her show.

Michelle and Barack Obama have been on her show. She is so influential.

So off she went to change into a whole new outfit so that she would look like she had gone home to bed and come in the next day.

We started dancing away again to get pumped up for the next show. I was really jet lagged, so I went into this routine where I did the same thing over and over again to conserve energy. I was on autopilot, just jumping up and down and and yelling, “Yeah!” over and over again.

The moment came when Ellen introduced the next guest. The whole show would be devoted to her. Not just a bit of the show.

Out walked Madonna. I genuinely went ballistic with excitement. Here she was – The Material Girl – with an entourage of fantastic male dancers. I hugged Mrs California. She had made another dream come true.