Since 1189, when the first mayor was elected, the role has changed over the years while preserving long-standing customs and traditions.

Today, the role of the Lord Mayor is as head of the Corporation of London, which is the local authority of London's Square Mile (The City), the world's leading international financial centre. And within his busy yearly tenure, the role has seen him travel the world as an ambassador for The City, promoting it and boosting the profile of British business at home and abroad.

By his side, the Mayoress has been no less busy, and their itinerary in the past week alone has taken them to Seattle, Vancouver, Beijing and now Shanghai to lend their support to the "Britain at the Leading Edge" week.

Indeed, direct from the airport, the Mayoress was whisked away to the Shanghai Foster Care Project to see first-hand the terrific work being done there to help orphaned and disabled children in the city. The project helps the children develop and grow whilst also facilitating their future placements with families.

As Lady Mayoress, Mrs Oliver has been actively involved in social and charitable interests this year and is Deputy President of the British Red Cross's London Branch as well as serving as a Trustee for the National Missing Person's Helpline.

One of her main focuses this year has been the Lord Mayor's Appeal - the aptly named Square Smile - which has been raising money and awareness for mental health and other medically based charities. Indeed, the lengths she's taken to promote the campaign are perhaps not what you would expect from a Lord Mayoress.

Sitting in Shanghai's Westin Hotel, she explains: "There is such a stigma about mental health both in the UK and throughout the world. So, I thought - how am I going to get media attention? I better do something wacky! So I went to circus school to learn how to do aerial acrobatics and I then opened the Lord Mayor's show (the annual procession through the City of London marking the start of the Mayor's year in office) under this huge helium balloon hung on just two wires. I was paid US$30,000 for that and it launched the campaign in one."

And she didn't stop there. Back in July this year, she became the first "normal person" to abseil down Canary Wharf, the UK's tallest tower standing at 244 metres high.

"Thirty people were to be allowed to abseil down that day," she says. "So we decided to sell the places at US$15,000 a place so we raised US$450,000 in one day for mental health."

This is not the first time that she has been to Shanghai and China. Twenty years ago, with 10 friends, she spent two weeks here in winter and had a great time but she says: "We had no idea it would be so cold. Wherever we went there were these thermal flasks full of hot water and we warmed up by having some tea."

Naturally, she is amazed by the changes that have taken place in Shanghai in the intervening years and intends to make the most of her few days here. As well as attending the "Britain at the Leading Edge" exhibition, she plans to go to the Vivienne Westwood fashion exhibition as, starting out in life, she was a fashion jeweller. The Shanghai Museum is also on the agenda as well as some official engagements.

Then after a stopover in Xi'an, its back home to the UK and the impending end of their year's tenure as the Lord Mayor and Lady Mayoress of London.

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