Performer's view of the Olympic opening ceremony: 'For a moment the eyes of the world were on me, and I've never had a buzz like it'

It may have been only for a few seconds, but for a short time the eyes of the world were on me. And it was great. I was one of the performers in the Jarrow Crusade part of Pandemonium. It was really cool to be part of it. I've never had a thrill like that before.

Never in history have more eyes been on a single thing. The Opening Ceremony is watched around the world and last night's was probably the most watched ever.

You are part of the biggest show in the world and maybe for two seconds, perhaps a split second, you are the most famous you can be.

It was electric in the stadium. Every different group was applauding everybody else. The Jarrow marchers entered from VOM 3 – that's what our entrance was called – and we had packs of dementors alongside NHS nurses cheering us on. We were high-fiving kids coming off from the Green and Pleasant Land. It really was special.

I had the jitters beforehand. No amount of coffee has ever made me feel like that, but it all worked out and was a lot more fun than I'd expected. There was a moment when it looked like it would rain – everybody was thinking, 'Please don't rain on the world's biggest parade' – but it stopped and now the show's over I think people now are giving not a sigh of relief, but of pride.

Being here last night and during the rehearsals was like having a backstage pass to the biggest show in the world. And you got to see the places the public can't get to – looking down staircases and the like. It felt really privileged. And it's more laid-back and fun than I thought it might be.

The performance wasn't uptight. I thought it might be stuffy but it wasn't. And the atmosphere was fantastic. I'm from Canada and I was wearing a Team Canada Olympic vest. I was coming through security and I got a bit of heckling by one of the soldiers on security, but it was all in good fun. There seem to be as many people here from around the world as there are from the UK.