The opening to the Conservatives’ conference in Manchester this morning was a strangely diffident affair.

Oliver Letwin, who has overseen the party’s wide-ranging policy review, gave a rushed PowerPoint presentation on all the policies, as if delegates might be unsure what the party stood for.

Even party chairman Eric Pickles betrayed nerves by tripping over a few words. But humility in the face of the voters is vastly preferable to hubris.

The stage backdrop was not a success. Random scenes from the Manchester skyline were projected behind the speakers, so grandee Francis Maude spoke with his head in front of the side of a semi.

But London mayor Boris Johnson finally energised the auditorium. He shambled on to the music of East Enders to indulge in a typically rumbustious performance which had delegates on their feet. It was impressive in both wit and content, his artful defence of bankers’ bonuses being a notable highlight.

Health policy has so far been mentioned only briefly, but that will change this afternoon with the set piece speech from Andrew Lansley, followed by a much less set piece debate in the evening hosted by the King’s Fund, with Lansley and Care Quality Commission chair Barbara Young among the speakers.