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Tuesday 20 November I went to Buckingham Palace to collect the OBE that I was awarded back in June. To say that I was overwhelmed by the whole occasion is an understatement.

The place is magnificent, with soldiers in their brass plates with lances, swords and tasselled helmets lining the magnificent staircase. All around was gold leaf décor, sumptuous furnishings and whole wall-sized oil paintings.

The ceremony itself is all very slickly organised: everyone to receive an award forms an orderly crocodile, in order of presentation, in the antechamber. When your name is announced you walk out into the ballroom where all the guests are seated, turn to face the Prince, curtsy (although the chaps were allowed to bow…) and walk to the podium where he is waiting. He clips your medal to the nifty little hook provided for the purpose, so there’s no fumbling with pins.

While he was doing the hooking on, Prince Charles asked me whether I was still writing about pensions? I replied that I write extensively on the subject for Money Management, and could I interest him in a subscription? He declined saying that, sadly, he would not have the time to read it. This is a real shame, as a Royal Warrant would be a unique boost for our circulation.

Then it was over.

So after 5 months’ anticipation, planning, organisation, stress, excitement, panic and sheer terror, the whole thing was over in exactly one minute. Once the royal hand is offered to shake, that’s your cue to leave and on comes the next one.

Someone asked me if there was anyone famous getting a gong on the same day, but the only name I recognised was Teddy Sherringham. Meant nothing to me though – mean anything to anyone else?