This shot was taken a few years ago, during my news photography career working for many of the top newspapers in the UK. Mayor of London Boris Johnson was joined by legendary actress Barbara Windsor at the launch of a regeneration project in East London.

News gathering is time-consuming, involving long journeys and plenty of waiting around… visualising the shots you’ll be striving to create and send back to your Editor. Having photographed Boris many times, both on and off mayoral duty, I know how much he appreciates the power of a photograph, and I was hopeful for something fun.

So ‘Babs’ arrived to be greeted by Boris. The photographer next to me politely shouted “Give her a kiss, Boris!” to which the Mayor replied something like “No, no, a hug is fine.” Undeterred, the photographer responded “Go on!” and was promptly rewarded with a moment taken straight from a Carry On movie – warm, animated and a bit cheeky.

Our ‘One Shot’ series invites our photographers to identify a particular image they’ve shot, and share a few thoughts about it. Follow us online to stay updated…