I’ve never been inside the Brixton Academy before and my first experience of it was, well, bizarre to say the least. I was there last night to watch Boris Johnson at People’s Question Time, which invites Londoners to challenge the Mayor and London Assembly Members on “what they are doing for the capital”.

To call the atmosphere challenging doesn’t really do it justice. Boris’ opening address was largely drowned out by boos, and his attempts to win over the audience with anecdotes about his appearance on Eastenders fell decidedly flat.

It was quite fascinating watching him try to address the serious concerns of, often extremely angry, people. As he told one woman he was sorry she was “continually offered skunk”, and another, who raised the issue of road safety, “I’m sorry to hear about your experience with the rubbish truck”, the effect was more comedic than convincing. There was a very strange moment when, in the middle of an explanation of how gun crime statistics in London are skewed by “gun intimation”, Boris stuck his own hand into his pocket to demonstrate what it would look like if he were pretending to have a gun.

At points the debate descended into pantomime, particularly when young people from Code 7 and the Starlight Academy loudly voiced their dissatisfaction with London Development Agency arrangements, which will see them moved out of their current premises at the Offley Works when the lease expires. The Chair, Valerie Shawcross, insisted that some of the group be “removed”.

Indeed, while it was a spectacle and certainly entertaining (if stressful), PQT did not produce anywhere near the quality of debate that is typical of its Dimbleby-hosted namesake. However, I got the impression that is not the point at all - you don’t have to submit a question to qualify for a seat in the audience, and, once there, people are chosen to speak entirely at random. However, accordingly what results is a truly unmediated communication between the audience and their directly-elected mayor. This made it an uncomfortable night for Boris, but can surely only be a good thing.

(Photo: Getty Images)