London's Olympic Park waves its magic wand

Mr Bean has a new fan - it's none other than Vladimir Putin, the Russian President. That's what he told David Cameron this week during his first visit to London in seven years. The two leaders were watching judo at the Olympics while indulging in spot of opportunistic tete-a-tete. Dipankar De Sarkar reports.

Mr Bean has a new fan - it's none other than Vladimir Putin, the Russian President. That's what he told David Cameron this week during his first visit to London in seven years. The two leaders were watching judo at the Olympics while indulging in spot of opportunistic tete-a-tete.

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The atmospherics were said to be "unusually warm", but that's only in comparison to what went on before. More than 20 years after the end of the Cold War, the relationship with Britain has been difficult. No one knows who really bumped off KGB defector Alexander Litvinenko with polonium in London six years ago. But everyone sort of knows.

Then there's all the business of Moscow's support to dictators in Libya and Syria. But clearly, no one, not even Putin, can turn down an invitation to an Olympics event. I was at the Olympic Park on the same day, and the charge and charm of the Games were evident all around.

London's whingers are legion, but belying their criticism, the airports have been working smoothly. Foreigners I met at the Olympic Park had only good things to say about airport immigration. It's clear that the authorities have taken every possible step to make the Games an unforgettable experience for tourists. A high-speed train from St Pancras station in central London to the Olympic Park in Stratford takes only 7 minutes.

From the minute you step into the station, your entire day - and every step - is guided by thousands of helpful, knowledgeable and cheerful unpaid volunteers. The walk from Stratford station - a transformed marvel - to the Park takes you through what has turned out to be one of the jazziest shopping arcades in Europe.

But the piece-de-resistance for me was Anish Kapoor's giant sculpture in steel, the ArcelorMittal Orbit. To fully experience this 377-foot artistic wonder, you have to see it after sundown, when it lights up in shades of deep red and silver. In the background, the 486mn-pound Olympic stadium changes colours - purple one moment, joyous yellow the next. Heaving and bustling during the day, the Olympic Park turns into a theatre of dreamy magic by night.