It was billed as an evening celebrating press freedom, and cagey engagement of US political media stars and executives with an administration that has been bearing down harshly on its press critics. The White House correspondents’ dinner is the “media prom” of the year at the Washington Hilton, amid pre-cocktails and red-carpet walks for guests in ballgowns and tuxedos.

The buzz, as Sinatra tunes played and the room settled down to the starters, was about how a President who has spurned the event since 2017 would mark his return and handle his speech. But then those starters were strewn across the floor as guests dived for cover, the President and JD Vance were bundled off stage and armed security agents swarmed the room.

Ten minutes before the shots were fired, I had crossed the lobby from where the gunman had descended the escalators and had sought to charge through the magnetometer security checkpoints right outside the door to the ballroom, unleashing volleys as security guards drew guns within seconds and brought him to the floor.

We had little idea that this was as serious as it was. Police later said the suspect was armed with a shotgun, handgun and multiple knives. The uncomfortable truth dawned as we threaded our way back towards the bathroom and plainclothes security men shouted at us to get out of the way – pushing a surging crowd to the walls and the corridors to create a gangway for yet more security detail and armed police.

Outside, a massive drone was monitoring the front of the hotel, sirens squealing, side streets cut off by police cars. The prospect of after parties, deemed hot tickets only a few hours before, paled and we shambled........

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