This is for everyone. The People's Opening Ceremony

The beds featured in the section will be sent to a Tunisian hospital, while the hundreds of NHS staff — many from London hospitals — are now returning to their day jobs.

Jackie Serrano, 38, a staff nurse at UCLH who lives in Tottenham Court Rd:

“We were like celebrities afterwards. We went to St Paul’s for a party dressed in our costumes and people were asking for photographs. I’ve always loved the Olympics and it definitely made me very proud to be part of it.

“There was a bit of drama during rehearsals with sprains. I ended up hitting my ankle on one of the beds. They were quite heavy.

“The nurses all had code names. Mine was ‘M25 nurse’ because we were positioned around the stadium. We had to wear false eyelashes, bright red lipstick and wore petticoats. It was all very glamorous. We had make-up artists and stylists come in to show us how to put our hair up.

“I enjoyed the rehearsals so much. The commitment was incredible. There were people from Cambridge, Salford — some of the girls haven’t seen their children for days because they work full-time and the rest of the time they’ve been rehearsing.”

Cathy Veaton, 54, matron at UCLH, from Berkhamsted in Hertfordshire:

“The whole thing was brilliant to be involved in. It was a one-off and the fact they involved everyone in the community was great. There were people with learning difficulties, wheelchair users, people of every creed and colour. I’ve been a nurse for over 30 years and this was definitely a highlight.

“The beds were rigged up with electrics with lights on the duvets. They were real hospital beds and they’re going to donate them to countries where patients will benefit.”

Student physiotherapist Sam Bourgein, 24, at the University of Brighton:

“What I loved was that there were good dancers and not-so-good dancers, and people of all ages. We all helped each other to learn the steps and the timings, and cheered each other up when we were tired after a 10-hour rehearsal.

“There were so many different people; I was dancing next to a woman called Margaret in her seventies and an Australian guy who was 24.

“We were all having the times of our lives. When we came out of the stadium afterwards there were people cheering and waving and wanting to take our pictures; I felt like a celebrity!

“I think it was absolutely brilliant that Danny Boyle had the NHS involved. I don’t see it as political — the NHS is one of the things that makes us British and makes me very proud. I think the whole show was about what it means to be British in the modern world.”

Tiago Bravo, 32, a healthcare assistant in UCLH emergency department, who lives in central London:

“What made it special was this was a celebration of sport and all walks of life. The youngest person I met was just six. The oldest was 78 and she wanted to participate in the Olympics because she came from Stratford and had seen the stadium being built. I was in the ‘G’ spelling out ‘GOSH’ for Great Ormond Street. I’ve never danced in my life but they wanted real people working in the NHS. They said: ‘The world is watching you. Just smile.’ I told myself not to cry but it was very emotional. It was so powerful. At the end, we all got a text saying it wouldn’t have been possible to do without us and thanking us for making a country and city proud. My family in Portugal said ‘We can’t believe you were part of this. We’re so proud’.”

Alex Plank, 11, heart patient treated at Great Ormond Street hospital, from Beckenham:

“It was a very big secret taking part and I couldn’t tell anyone. It was difficult not telling my friends. The dress rehearsal on Wednesday lasted from 4pm to midnight. Our job was to wave at everyone watching. My mum told me who Danny Boyle was — he was a kind man and asked me what football team I supported which is Chelsea. Usain Bolt is one of my heroes so the highlight was seeing him in the stadium. We were behind these gates but managed to give him a big wave. I’m hoping he’s going to win lots of medals.”

Alex’s father John, 47, a Home Office civil servant, said: “There were nine children who went straight from GOSH to the ceremony and back again.

“To see GOSH recognised was quite moving. The work the hospital does is so important — and it’s important they get the credit for it. Alex has been at GOSH since he was a baby — he had open-heart surgery at five months.”

Additional reporting: Michael Howie, Benedict Moore-Bridger, Maxine Frith, Peter Dominiczak

THE POPPINSES

AN actress who flew through the air as Mary Poppins told how she and 31 fellow nannies were left dangling more than 130 feet above the ground before getting the all-clear.

Professional aerial artist Clare Elliott was one of 32 Mary Poppinses who swooped down from the roof of the Olympic stadium on wires during the £27 million spectacular.

Once on the ground, they were cheered by the crowd as they vanquished Harry Potter’s nemesis Lord Voldemort and the Child Catcher from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

“We were clipped in for a few minutes and hanging above the walkway on the rim of the stadium,” said Londoner Ms Elliott, 36. “It was the most beautiful view. You could look out over London and then of course you could see into the stadium. The lights in there were amazing.

“Suddenly they give you your cue in your ear,” she said. “They say, ‘And you’re flying’ and suddenly you’re suspended over 80,000 people. Then you start to speed up. It was incredible and completely surreal.”

The moment she finally loosened the clip holding her in place and began gliding above the crowd towards the ground will be an abiding memory, she said. “When I go to bed and close my eyes that’s what I see. I can’t get rid of it. It will be with me for a long time. It’s that dream of flying. It was so special.”

The 32 actresses, who trained for more than nine months for the vital role, were on wires attached to rigging capable of supporting 25 tons for the 20-second descent. They all carried umbrellas which lit up.

Annette Walker, another Poppins, said it was a childhood dream to fly like the magical nanny. The dancer, 35, from Catford said: “Mary Poppins was my favourite film when I was a kid and I always wanted to fly like her, but I never thought I’d get to do it.

“I’m a professional tap dancer but I can also do aerial work. When I went to audition I thought I’d be dancing but they asked me how I felt about heights. I said I was fine and then they said, ‘How do you feel about 40 metres?’ I didn’t realise how high that was until we got to the stadium and we started at 20 metres [65 feet 7in]. We all started looking at each other, going, ‘Oh my God!’”

Ms Walker said the hardest aspect was keeping quiet about her role. “I did drop a hint to my mum that she’d be better off looking up in the air for me rather than down on the ground. Other than that I didn’t tell anyone.

“I was a bit nervous about the brollies, in some rehearsals they didn’t open properly, but we knew everything would work on the night.”

Peter Dominiczak

THE KISS

The teenage dancer whose kiss during the opening ceremony turned her into an overnight sensation told the Standard today she was “just good friends” with her co-star.

Jasmine Breinburg shared a clinch with Henrique Costa, 20, in front of billions of viewers during a segment that paid tribute to British pop music and the inventor of the world wide web, Tim Berners-Lee.

Jasmine, 18, who works in a clothes shop in Stratford Westfield and a burger stall on the South Bank, said: “The kiss wasn’t really awkward. We were in character and my character was in love with his, so it didn’t feel strange. But it’s not about what part you play. The event wouldn’t have been anything without the masses of other performers.”

Mr Costa’s real girlfriend was only a few feet away during the kiss. Jasmine said: “My friends were like, how did you do it? When I was told what I had to do, I was all silly about it, like a teenager, thinking, how am I going to do it? I had a boyfriend [during rehearsals] and so I didn’t know.”

Jasmine, pictured below, grew up in Brixton before moving to Deptford. She was in the Olympic park last night to watch the hockey with her father. The kiss was the climax of a storyline in which June (Jasmine) and Frankie (Henrique) travel through a series of musical eras as they fall in love thanks to a lost mobile phone. Henrique, from Newham, is a dancer.

Josh Loeb

THE PARTIES

The dancers who took part in the opening ceremony told today how they partied all night after Danny Boyle’s extravaganza.

Thousands of young volunteers headed into Hackney and Dalston for a series of wild late-night after-parties. At one in the Hysteria bar in Kingsland Road, hundreds of participants re-enacted their part in the show, despite having performed their sequences to the world barely two hours earlier.

The volunteers made it to the cocktail bar as the Olympic cauldron was being lit as part of the finale, and they watched the final moments of the extravaganza on a big screen.

Dancer Juliette Gilford, 27, who stayed out until 6am, said she had made “friends for life” during the intense three months of training. She said: “We were all screaming when we got our cue. The feeling will stay with me forever. It was just a mad feeling. Everyone had been working since April on it and finally we could let off steam.

“It was kind of emotional because it’s not something that any of us are ever going to do again. It’s going to be hard to match that.”

She was about to leave the Dalston party when she heard “our song” — the Dizzee Rascal segment. “I ran over and we all started doing the routine again. The dancefloor became our stage.”

Klisman Murati, a 21-year-old student from Twickenham who organised the party, said: “I wanted everyone to have a chance to come together one last time before they go their separate ways.”

Asked whether he thought new romances had blossomed, he said: “What do you expect of young guys and girls? A few people did hook up but as to whether they went home together I don’t know.”

The venue quickly became full to capacity, and the shutters were pulled down for a basement lock-in at 2am — which lasted until 6am.

Many of the opening ceremony volunteers were professional performers who had taken time out to be part of the event.

Lewis Davis, from Whitechapel, said: “It’s taken up so much of our lives for the last three months. There have been early morning rehearsals in Dagenham. Lifelong friendships have been made. I’m a professional performer and the difference between this and a professional gig is there has been no bitchiness.

“I’m so proud of London. We all want to do it all over again.”

Dominik Siedlecki, who played one of the multiple David Bowies, said: “It was truly awesome. All of us felt like part of the team and Danny Boyle is a cool chap. It felt like he was just one of us.”

Another actor, Grant Sterry, said a number of romances had begun.

“A few relationships have been formed but it’s mostly been friendships. It’s been a very supportive environment. Danny Boyle is the most personable director I have worked with. We were all expecting him to be looking at us from a distance, but he was right there and he talked to everyone involved.”

Philippa Tipper, 46, performed in the industrial revolution segment.

She said: “We tried our best to do some matchmaking. There were lots of beautiful nurses and there was one guy we kept trying to set them up with.”

But one performer said the secrecy surrounding the affair ended his relationship.

Pete Davies, an IT consultant who was part of a troupe of drummers that performed inside the stadium, said: “We were all sworn to secrecy. I had a girl break up with me pretty much because I wouldn’t tell her what was going to happen in the ceremony.”

Jennie Hone, who teaches at a primary school in Greenwich and played another of the Ziggy Stardusts, said: “I just wanted to be involved in the Games in some way and this was a great way to do that. It was truly awesome.”

Computer programmer Elmo Avang, from Canada Water, said of one fellow performer: “He broke his left arm in an accident on the Tube and he was so upset. He had an operation scheduled for Friday evening but then the hospital called him and said they were cancelling it because of a lack of equipment, so he got to take part in the end.”

Josh Loeb