Didn't we do well without politicians?

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There is no question London did well. The lead star was on form. The theatre was decked with bunting. The sun shone and the people came in their millions. The capital witnessed a sympathy between monarch and city that is historically rare. A hesitant Queen seemed to like London. A hesitant London seemed to like the Queen.

There was more to it than that. For one glorious weekend Britain was a nation without politics. As that extraordinary golden coach rumbled through Trafalgar Square and up the Strand to St Paul's, its route studiously ignored Whitehall and avoided Parliament Square. It headed not for Tony Blair but direct to God.

When the Queen arrived at "the City", there was no Citizen Ken in evidence. Mr Livingstone is a politician and one not given to ceremonial. He would have been out of place. Instead, the Queen was met by a funny man in a fur shawl and necklace, opening her coach door and shoving a pearl sword into her lap. He was that most supposedly non-political of individuals, the Lord Mayor of London. As the nation prayed, sang, danced, even made a fool of itself, it did so as a nation, not a faction or party, not new or old Labour, not as one generation or another. London was a politics-free zone.

Almost every facet of public life is now dominated by politics. The funeral of Diana demands a prime ministerial oration. A politician must grace a Royal Academy banquet, a Cup Final, a museum opening or a new bridge. The future of Wembley stadium is the subject of political argument. The future of the BBC is a bone of political contention. Apply for a lottery grant, a sports centre and school gym or a new violin and someone, somewhere will want political capital from it. When he was arts minister, Chris Smith was so ubiquitous that Covent Garden mischievously suggested he appear as "the minister" at the end of Beethoven's Fidelio.

This weekend, Britain gave a huge sigh of relief that statehood could be celebrated on a public stage that was not also a political one. Here was a national event at which celebrities appeared without Cherie Blair grinning starstruck in their company. Paul McCartney and Cliff Richard, Kiri Te Kanawa and Rostropovich were not playing to the greater glory of the Third Way project. They were playing for Britain, without the saccharine connotation that phrase can often imply.

Never have I witnessed the concept of non-political head of state so splendidly vindicated. It made a real difference that the continuity and dignity of British nationhood could be seen in the person of a studiously non-partisan individual, the Queen. While I have no quarrel with republicanismin principle, I have always found Britain's monarchy preferable. The reason is that it contrives to add a quality to nationhood that is not present when the head of state is elected or chosen from the political class. This weekend we saw that quality in operation.

We saw it, too, in Buckingham Palace, so often a ponderous backdrop for national events. For two brief days, the Palace and its associated gardens suddenly became part of the West End rather than a suburb of Belgravia. They appeared wellcrafted for these occasions. The Mall from Admiralty Arch offers the formality and symmetry needed for parades, crowd-greetings, fly-pasts and fireworks. The parks can absorb a million people. Within half a mile are 10 Underground stations and three railway termini, not to mention the greatest concentration of eating places in Europe.

I had never thought this classical architecture capable of combining the formal and the funky without breaking step. The royal regalia, the soldiers in silly uniforms, the bearskins, leopard-skins and fairy-tale coaches, merged into a single blur with symphony orchestras, samba dancers and rock bands. In the surroundings of the park, pop musicians seemed at one with royalty, even if it helped that the musicians were usually older.

This location has now performed equally well for a Royal Wedding, a VE-Day celebration and Princess Diana's funeral. It has been used for funfairs, though this was its first time as a rock venue. It worked. Like a great theatre, Buckingham Palace and the Mall seem able to adjust to any play. The Jubilee celebration was planned to offer something for all. It was a chance to see the Queen and Royal Family, to witness a slice of history, to hear an all-star concert and to watch a grand parade. It was part Glastonbury, part Trooping the Colour. It could have flopped, especially had it rained. But God favoured the brave.

The contrast with the Millennium evening has been painful. That was a tougher challenge, being in midwinter, at night and with yet more people pouring into the capital. Nor was there any focus on one place or person. Millennium night was blighted by a bomb scare and obsessive security. The Dome was at the "wrong" end of town. Millions outside felt excluded and thousands inside trapped. Yet Millennium night suffered something else. By the end of that year, the project had been hijacked by politics. To ridicule it became a political stock in trade, to defend it became a requirement of political loyalty.

You cannot mix politics and celebration, or at least you cannot hope to draw an entire nation into the mix. Celebration cannot be a confusion of message, agenda and spin. To mark 50 years of office of the head of state was simple, embodying one person and one concept.

Indeed it was so simple that the temptation must be to do it again. There is a danger in this. The Jubilee succeeded because of its rarity. Monarchs do not often rule for 50 years. Stars will not often perform for free. The sun will not always shine. To stage a royal celebration every year would cheapen the currency and lose its lustre.

But I do think such events can be tried more often. The British clearly respond to the form of monarch on show this week. The "inclusivity" of the Royal Command worked, perhaps to the surprise of the organisers. The opening of the gardens to the public worked, as did the relaying of music from palace concerts to the park. There is no reason why these should not be regular events. The enjoyable chaos of the parade gave the pompous surroundings of Buckingham Palace a vitality they had never seen before. If monarchy is to remain visible and in touch, this is its proper venue, its home ground.

This part of central London is unbeatable for such events. Here is truly a world-class urban theatre, with stars, talent, props and back-stage on perpetual call. Maintain the ceremony and the song, and the sky is the limit. This is what London does well. So yes, it can be tried more often. But keep the politics out of it.

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