By Kim Chisnall

There are an estimated 4.2 million CCTV cameras in Britain, meaning that each person in the UK is caught on camera an average of 300 times a day.

Spooky isn't it? Whenever we stop to film in London it normally takes between two and four minutes to be picked up on CCTV and approached by a private security guard. George Orwell's science fiction fantasy 1984 has almost come to life in modern day Britain.

But the presence of so many electronic eyes doesn't necessarily mean you're any safer.

The other day as I jumped on the bus home I heard the driver phoning back to base. She'd just witnessed a gang of men punching and kicking a boy near her last stop. She told her boss that the boy was lying on the ground and she was scared they were going to kill him. It's a safe bet that all those attackers were wearing hoodies or baseball caps, making CCTV cameras next to useless.

Statistics tell me I'm nine times more likely to be murdered in the tropical island of Bermuda than in London. Nonetheless, I'd feel far safer surrounded by sand and sea than London's high-rise tower blocks. It's not like I'm living in constant fear, but I'm certainly aware of the area I'm walking in, and how I carry my handbag.

After all, an unlocked bike on the streets of London disappears within minutes and everywhere there are posters warning you to keep your mobile phone or iPod hidden from view. "Don't advertise your stuff to thieves" the poster reads, like they need an invitation.

Which is why when I arrived at work this morning and discovered I'd lost my wallet I retraced my steps with little hope. Five minutes of frantic pacing and pavement staring followed before my faith in humanity was restored by a phone call.

My bank's fraud unit called to say my wallet had been picked up by a teacher at the local school and could I possibly walk round and collect it?

On a rainy London morning a lovely person had not only resisted the temptation to nick the £20 in my wallet and go crazy with my credit card, they'd actually made the effort to track me down.

It made me think that this was the way society used to operate before we were constantly being watched by all those security cameras. We simply relied on the honesty of others.