I’m sat writing this on my mobile phone, in the glow of three candles. All around me are the sounds of explosions and flashes that light up the sky. For added drama it is snowing. A round of rockets has just screamed into the sky, exploding with sharp cracks.

This rather cosy and surreal scene is enhanced by the fact our row of houses is in the middle of a power cut! The lights are on in the houses behind ours, and down the road works, but not here…