Last week, I emerged from the depths of the Tube in central London for a day that would once have been unthinkable.

First, I bought a morning coffee to fortify myself for a battery of work meetings lurking ahead. A few hours later, I went out for a dull but edible box of sushi. On the way back to the office, I dropped into a mini-supermarket to buy some of the Earl Grey tea bags that get me through the afternoon.