There comes a time in the life of every nation when a once-in-a-generation change creeps up on it unobserved.

In a single day, something grabs the country by the throat, destroys the prevailing calamity, and reveals a bright new landscape of infinite possibility.

Yesterday, that tipping point occurred in middle-England, transforming Britain overnight from a grubby little socialist island off the north-west corner of Europe, into Borisland.

In the context of massive gains by Conservatives in the local elections, London swept away its Mayor, Red Ken Livingstone — who encouraged every terrorist and barmy oddball in exchange for votes — and out popped Boris Johnson.

Boris is a classical scholar who could easily double as a standup comedian. Indeed he often chairs the popular TV panel show Have I Got News For You.

His opponents regularly portray him as “priapic” and a “buffoon”, slurs that have only embellished his aura. Being a priapic buffoon is not an easy accomplishment. Try it.

In fact, as a former editor of the prestigious and gentlemanly journal, The Spectator, he is far from making the “B” and “P” words his own.

As well as holding the Parliamentary seat of Henley, Boris is possessed of an unshakeably amiable nature and an easy approachability that makes him a huge favourite with all kinds of people.

Syntagma does not underestimate Boris as many do, nor do we underestimate the size of the task now facing him. Governing London is no job for the fainthearted or the incompetent. For now, it is enough that he isn’t Ken.

Soon though he’ll be called upon to show his mettle. We have no doubt he will succeed and lead the charge for his party leader, David Cameron, to become Prime Minister, whenever the general election is called.

Hail to Boris, Chieftan of London, the greatest city on earth — apart from Exeter, of course.

It may be crisis point in the world of financial markets, banks, Treasuries, Exchequers and Kings’ Counting Houses but, here in the South-West of England, spring has truly sprung.

A carpet of daffodils heralds spring in the northern hemisphere

I’m aware that the weather can be as treacherous as the stock markets, but no-one can doubt that there’s a bullish mood in the bulbous population just below ground.

With flooding and mayhem elsewhere in the country, we at least have a sign of what is to come.

Let us hope it’s a metaphor for the world economy.

I’ve written a number of times about the new Apple store about to open in our town here in the West Country of England. While looking out for local information on an opening date, the following email arrived for me this morning from Apple :

If you look at it carefully, you’ll see it’s precisely geo-targeted. There’s no mention of a town or city, just the shopping complex : Princesshay. No-one outside a couple of counties would know what this was. So how did they do it?

Putting on my Sherlock Holmes deer-stalker hat, I’ve concluded the information must have been gleaned from my membership of Apple iTunes, possibly from credit card details. Even so, that’s very precise targeting and shows what can be done in the age of the internet.

We have known for a while that Google is seeking ways of marrying person-specific advertising with worldwide IP television. Apple seems to have beaten them to it with city-specific advertising by email.

Some might call it spam, but I’m grateful for the information.

Well, we never use cliches here at Syntagma. Nelson’s Trafalgar refrain is all over the papers today and on everyone’s lips — but not ours.

After musing briefly about whether to go to Paris to watch the Rugby World Cup Final between England and South Africa today, I decided against it. An autumn day in the French capital in the middle of a transport strike, cool temperatures, cool Parisians and hundreds of thousands of rugger fans is not as enticing as it might sound at last-orders in the local pub.

However, England’s greatest fan, Prince Harry, will probably be there, together with his South African girlfriend, Chelsy Davy, who will need all her diplomatic skills not to cheer every Springbok score. That match will be as interesting as the game itself.

Prince Harry at the semi-final when England beat France

Syntagma predicts an England win. The team will be two points adrift with seconds of the match to go. Jonny Wilkinson will receive a pass outside the Springboks’ ten-yard line, look up at the posts and kick a perfect drop goal to take the match by one point.

How do I know this? It happens every time : in the semi-final last week, and in the previous final in Australia four years ago. It’s now an established tradition. A British version of Groundhog day.

And Syntagma’s prediction for the Formula One World Championship in Brazil tomorrow? Lewis Hamilton, 22, will win in his rookie season, making sporting history in the process. He reminds me of that line in the film, Chariots of Fire : “God made me fast, and when I run, I can feel his pleasure.”

Who says the English are no good at sport? Actually, I think that may have been me.