I was at an election campaign visit - here's how it's like a film set, planned to the second

The media is told about these visits in advance but the Shropshire Star, the BBC, ITV and radio stations are asked not to publish where party leaders will be before they make an appearance.

Vicky Gilbert, of Shropshire Flower Farm, had been called out of the blue by Lib Dem head officer some time in advance of Tuesday's visit.

She has no connections to the party and is only "confident I might vote for them". Although when the Star spoke to her she was leaning towards a vote because of the party's candidate. "I think she's done a lot," she said.

But Vicky's business has a lot about it to gladden the hearts of Liberal Democrats, as it is about "sustainable farming", and increasing flower production in the UK.

Apparently only 14 per cent of the flowers that we buy in the country are grown here.

Vicky grows local David Austin roses and a plethora of beautiful poppies and Sweet Williams, which she says are coming back into fashion.

The Lib Dem leader will doubtless hope that his party's fortunes similarly improve following the controversies of being in coalition with the Conservatives for five years after the 2010 General Election.

Sir Ed's arrival at the farm in Ash Parva, near Whitchurch was planned down to the minute.

If a film director had slammed a clapper-board shut and shouted "action!" it would not have been out of place.

All of a sudden Vicky, Sir Ed and Lib Dem candidate Helen Morgan popped out from around the side of the lovely farmhouse and walked across the garden to the greenhouse.

TV cameras whirred, if they still do that these days, and cameras clicked.

They picked Vicky's flowers, placing them in shiny metal buckets as they posed for posy preparation pictures and exchanged pleasantries.

Once they had enough for a fair display they headed for a table where Vicky showed them how to assemble them in a fragrant and colourful display.

Members of the press were seen dashing across her closely mown lawn as they sought the perfect shot.

The creation of the bouquets was a bit like that old 1970s/80s show the Generation Game although they had much more time than Brucie and Anthea would ever have allowed.

One person, possibly a reporter, was seen rolling his eyes with the kind of look that said he was very bored and wanted things to move on.

But the creation of flower displays meant we all had to wait and Vicky judged them as not bad.

She has been a florist for years, starting her love of the plants in the fields nearby a child, assembling little posies.

But the politicians had produced results that were "not bad" said Vicky after the two had departed.

She usually spends half a day teaching people how to create such results.

They didn't take the flowers with them though; but two reporters, one yours truly who grabbed Sir Ed's creating, was allowed to take them away with a promise not to sell them on eBay. They have given my house a lovely fragrance!

After the flower picking and arranging came the time for questions from the media.

It wasn't a press conference as such with us news hounds howling questions, but each given a chance to have a few minutes with the leader.

There is a strict pecking order for these events too, with the telly people given first dibs, followed by radio and then reporters from the "traditional" print-based media. (Although we are much more than that now, he said in a huff.)

As a press officer from London counted down the minutes each reporter was given with his blue nail polished fingers, we all crammed in as much as we could.

The answers? Well, they very much repeat the same lines about party policy and how they are different from the others.

They are all hoping that ideas sink in during the short campaign and are persuasive in getting people to vote for them.

And then Sir Ed and his entourage were off.

The narrow lanes around Vicky's place are single track and suitable for tractors but not the big yellow Lib Dem battle bus.

That vehicle, I was told, provided an attraction at a local lorry park from where the entourage hopped onto lifts to get them to and from the venue.

Meanwhile this reporter for one was pleased that where he parked did not get in the way of the farmers on the big agricultural machines as they got on with their days despite the political fuss taking place in the lane just a short walk away.

I somehow suspect that Sir Ed may be back to North Shropshire in the days ahead as polling day comes closer and the Lib Dems scrap harder to keep a hold on the seat they won so spectacularly at a by-election in December 2021 as Boris Johnson's government started to implode.