LONDON, England - I'll never forget the day an envelope from Buckingham Palace dropped through my letterbox ... the handwriting was immaculate, the paper expensive and the seal was, well, very royal.

I was a young reporter at the time, just starting out at Yorkshire Television in the north of England, and I had been invited by the Queen for an evening reception at Buckingham Palace. I must have re-read it a dozen times before it actually sunk in.

In the summer of 1998, the Queen welcomed a group of young achievers to her London residence. Included in the envelope was a booklet with the names of all the other invitees ... I remember that footballers Michael Owen and Ryan Giggs were on the list, along with actors and television celebrities.

I bought a new suit, got myself a proper haircut and tried not to cut myself shaving as the big moment approached. My proud family waved me off at the grand gold-tipped gates and although I was 25, I felt like it was my first day at school as I headed inside.

Security was tight (as were my shoelaces) and cameras were banned (this was before the days of cell-phone photography.)

If anything can be informal and formal at the same time, this was it.  And at times it resembled something of a free-for-all as everybody jostled into a long line to shake Her Majesty's hand. But etiquette and courtesy prevailed; as the Queen approached, courtiers whispered advice on how she should be addressed.

When my moment came, I nodded deferentially and said "Ma'am."  In what was then a brief conversation, she asked what I did and I said I worked in television. "Hmm," she replied, "we've had quite a few of you in here tonight."

Whatever ego I had up until that moment was crushed. Clearly my big moment wasn't quite as big a moment for the Head of State. The Queen had worthier souls to meet, and she was quickly onto the next handshake, the next gloved handshake.

Quite honestly I had felt like a fraud all night; I was surrounded by people that had served their country in the line of duty, been injured in the line of fire, worked for charitable organisations or overcome tremendous odds to succeed in their personal lives. I was just some bloke that had anchored a few live shows at a young age.

Still, I was grateful for the experience and I never thought that I'd be standing in front of the Palace more than a decade later talking to a global audience about my brief audience with the Queen.

I wonder if any of the world's top leaders will be as intimidated as I was. There is no doubt they will all be respectful and mindful of their surroundings. But it's still easy to commit faux pas's in such company, and the U.S. President should be careful about eating too many biscuits at tea or turning his back on Her Majesty.

The same will go for the rest of the leaders at their meeting later on ... but unlike in my situation, a social mis-step will be seized upon and reported right around the world!

MOSCOW, Russia - Whichever team wins tonight's Champions League final, the victory will be historic. Chelsea are playing in the finals for the first time, while Manchester United's appearance in Moscow coincides with the 50th anniversary of the Munich air crash, a disaster that killed 23 people including eight of the team's stars.

Football fans are gluttons for omens and for United the disaster is such an intrinsic part of the club's history that it would be fitting if the Reds lift the European Cup on a significant anniversary.

Chelsea's fans also believe that victory is on the cards. Their benefactor Roman Abramovich is Russian and the game is being played in his homeland.

Much has been made of the high cost of flights and accommodation for the fans and for some it will have been too much. But the tens of thousands that have made the trip are being treated like celebrities – posing for photographs and even signing autographs for the locals.

Chelsea supporters in particular have told CNN that they couldn't have missed Chelsea's first ever European final although some took a bit more persuading than others.

Ian Spillett from London told us that his wife encouraged him to make the trip because she knew what it would mean to him. "But I think she's hoping to get a new set of patio doors to the house, I've backed the team to win 3-1 because that result would offset the cost of my trip," he said.

Very few are expecting so many goals though. The teams know each other intimately and it is expected to be a tight game. But remember, two of the most exciting finals in recent memory involved English teams – United in 99 and Liverpool in 05 - so the optimist in me is holding out for a thriller.

MOSCOW, Russia – In the world of TV jargon we have a phrase called the "beauty shot": essentially this is a camera position which shows a geographical location in all its glory. That's exactly what CNN found for our live coverage of the Champions League Final between Chelsea and Manchester United.Perched atop Sparrow Hills, across the road from Moscow State University, our position affords a spectacular view of the Luzhniki Stadium - but that wasn't the only "beautiful" thing about it.

As we set up to commence broadcasting this morning we discovered that we were sharing our spot with a Russian music video shoot. I must confess that it was something of a distraction trying to talk about Ashley Cole and Ryan Giggs when dozens of glamorous young actresses were skipping directly through my eyeline.

Of course they were as intrigued by us as we were by them and we soon discovered that the best way to impress them was to predict a Chelsea win. Since the blues are owned by the Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich, the London side have plenty of local support.

The Russian connection has meant that Chelsea have been nicknamed "Chelski" back in England but apparently that doesn't translate very well here. "Chelski? Sounds more like Polish to me!"

Anyway, one thing led to another and we were soon dining on the food prepared by the film crew's catering department: kidney beans and... skewered chicken hearts.

With such a late kick off (10.45 pm) many of the fans are spending the day sightseeing, and those that want to avoid the risk of trouble are steering well clear of Red Square. We have already encountered plenty of supporters who want a photo of the stadium which they hope will be proudly displayed after a victorious mission to Moscow.

MOSCOW, Russia - It's an overcast day here in Moscow but nothing will dampen the spirits of the Chelsea and Manchester United players and fans who are preparing for the biggest club match of the season -  and for many a once-in-a-lifetime occasion.

Kick-off for the European Champions League final, the first ever between two English clubs, isn't until 10.45 this evening (local time) so it will be a long day for the teams who will try anything to make the hours pass quicker.

But while the fans will enjoy the sights and sounds of the Russian capital, the players themselves will probably spend the day cooped up in their hotels. Chelsea players tried a walkabout in Red Square yesterday but were mobbed by supporters and had to seek refuge back at base.

It's hard to recall a match with so much hype and intrigue, which will be watched in 230 countries and by more than 150 million people.

But much of the talk has been dominated by the state of the pitch relaid over Luzhniki's artificial playing surface less than three weeks ago and by all accounts not looking too good. Chunks were coming up during training last night and if it rains during the day, then there could be problems.

But everyone is trying to stay positive and enjoy the build-up - because only one team will be able to enjoy the long ride home.

LONDON, England – It’s said that there’s only one thing worse than bad publicity, and that’s no publicity.

Chinese government officials might disagree after the events in London today, where the Olympic torch relay was marred by pro-Tibetan demonstrators.  The runners were booed, demonstrators clashed with police and one man tried to grab the torch while another almost doused the flame with a fire extinguisher.  CNN were not alone in beaming the drama around the world, and it will have made uncomfortable viewing for the Chinese authorities.

They are fast realising that by hosting the Olympic Games in August, whatever goes on in China is now everyone else’s business. Their decision to send the flame on the longest ever global relay – some 85,000 miles – seemed bold before, especially so now.

I should mention that there was plenty of support for the Chinese on the streets – especially in Chinatown where the Chinese Ambassador Fu Ying ran with the torch – and my colleague Emily Chang spoke with some of them. They were livid about what they saw as the one-sided coverage by all the media, and while that was part of the story, there was no doubt about the main headline.

Picture editors will have an interesting choice for tomorrow’s front pages, in addition to the disruption on the streets, the British Prime Minster Gordon Brown posed with the flame at 10 Downing Street.

Pro-Tibetan campaigners and at least one leading British politician had urged him not to, and in an attempt to defend the government’s position, the Olympic Minister Tessa Jowell approached us for an interview. Live on CNN, she said that Mr Brown’s participation in no way means that he condones China’s violent behavior in Tibet.

Of course it doesn’t require a great leap of imagination to see the image being used for propaganda. To be fair, he was in a tricky spot, to have refused the torch would have been a serious snub to the Chinese; it remains to be seen whether such an endorsement will return to haunt him.

It will all be a different story in London in 2012 when the flame will be welcomed back for a two week stay during the summer Olympics. In fact, during the torch’s procession through Stratford – venue of the games in four years time – it was met with loud applause.

But if the scuffles and the skirmishes are anything to go by, it’s going to be a long road back to Beijing and the other host cities of the torch relay will now be bracing themselves. Chinese organisers must wish they can stick it on a plane and fly it straight back to China!

BRUSSELS, Belgium – My mentor once told me that there is no such thing as a perfect shoot and, having spent more than a decade in the sports news business, I'd have to agree with him.

Wednesday's shoot with Michael Schumacher in Brussels was a perfect example. The story that a drinks company - Bacardi Limited - was launching a drink-driving campaign was interesting enough, but what really enticed us to the Belgian capital was the lure of an interview with Formula One's record-breaking seven-time world champion.
Although retired from professional racing, Schumacher remains one of the biggest names in world sport. But, even for top broadcasters like CNN, such interview opportunities are rare.

Therefore I travelled on the early-morning Eurostar from London with a long list of questions, ranging from Schumacher's thoughts on retirement, his recent success with motorcycling, the current F1 championship, F1 safety, the future of the sport and his legacy. Oh, and of course his thoughts on the road safety campaign! Failure to ask a question about the launch would be like turning up to a dinner party without a bottle of wine.

The dilemma was that the PR company had only given us 10 minutes, and this clearly wasn't going to be long enough. Believe it or not, we haggled for an extra two minutes, but Schumacher's PR staff - and there were plenty of them - were going to be watching the second hand of their watches extremely closely.

The trick now was to cover as many topics as possible, asking follow-ups where appropriate, but without jeopardizing our shopping list of topics. There's nothing worse than being wrapped up with 6 questions still to go, equally it's infuriating to rush through and finish with minutes to spare.

After a bit of practice, you develop a sixth sense for the timing of these things, but are always on the lookout for a gesticulating hand in the eye-line ... the dreaded signal to stop asking questions.

Usually, one can ignore the first of these with a hand signal of your own, indicating your acknowledgement. To pass through the second will set the pulses racing on the sidelines however, and the third risks a full-scale confrontation. Often, the time elapsed during this entire process will be no more that 45 seconds, but it's enough to risk the wrath of a PR entourage.

I was always told to save "the naughty question" until the end, and it was this strategy that caused real panic. As I asked whether FIA president Max Mosley, who had reportedly been caught in a sex orgy (of all things) should step down, Schumacher's PA hissed to my producer, "If you don't wrap him, I will!"

Michael diplomatically side-stepped the last question and we all remained friends; and although it was frustrating not to have had more time, I realised that I was fortunate to have gotten any time in the first place.

So now we had to cut our piece and with six hours to kill in Brussels, we were ushered off to a "private room" where we could begin our edit. It also just so happened to be the dressing room for Bacardi's rather attractive hostesses.

Actually, what was I saying about there never being a perfect shoot ...!BRUSSELS, Belgium - My mentor once told me that there is no such thing as a perfect shoot and, having spent more than a decade in the sports news business, I'd have to agree with him.

Wednesday's shoot with Michael Schumacher in Brussels was a perfect example. The story that a drinks company - Bacardi Limited - was launching a drink-driving campaign was interesting enough, but what really enticed us to the Belgian capital was the lure of an interview with Formula One's record-breaking seven-time world champion.

Although retired from professional racing, Schumacher remains one of the biggest names in world sport. But, even for top broadcasters like CNN, such interview opportunities are rare.

Therefore I travelled on the early-morning Eurostar from London with a long list of questions, ranging from Schumacher's thoughts on retirement, his recent success with motorcycling, the current F1 championship, F1 safety, the future of the sport and his legacy. Oh, and of course his thoughts on the road safety campaign! Failure to ask a question about the launch would be like turning up to a dinner party without a bottle of wine.

The dilemma was that the PR company had only given us 10 minutes, and this clearly wasn't going to be long enough. Believe it or not, we haggled for an extra two minutes, but Schumacher's PR staff - and there were plenty of them - were going to be watching the second hand of their watches extremely closely.

The trick now was to cover as many topics as possible, asking follow-ups where appropriate, but without jeopardizing our shopping list of topics. There's nothing worse than being wrapped up with 6 questions still to go, equally it's infuriating to rush through and finish with minutes to spare.

After a bit of practice, you develop a sixth sense for the timing of these things, but are always on the lookout for a gesticulating hand in the eye-line ... the dreaded signal to stop asking questions.

Usually, one can ignore the first of these with a hand signal of your own, indicating your acknowledgement. To pass through the second will set the pulses racing on the sidelines however, and the third risks a full-scale confrontation. Often, the time elapsed during this entire process will be no more that 45 seconds, but it's enough to risk the wrath of a PR entourage.

I was always told to save "the naughty question" until the end, and it was this strategy that caused real panic. As I asked whether FIA president Max Mosley, who had reportedly been caught in a sex orgy (of all things) should step down, Schumacher's PA hissed to my producer, "If you don't wrap him, I will!"

Michael diplomatically side-stepped the last question and we all remained friends; and although it was frustrating not to have had more time, I realised that I was fortunate to have gotten any time in the first place.

So now we had to cut our piece and with six hours to kill in Brussels, we were ushered off to a "private room" where we could begin our edit. It also just so happened to be the dressing room for Bacardi's rather attractive hostesses.

Actually, what was I saying about there never being a perfect shoot ...!