War makes people do crazy things – and I’m spending £400 a week prepping

Long before US defence secretary Pete Hegseth suggested that Tehran could hit London with its missiles, I was worried about the Iran war – if I’m honest, mostly about the prospect of food and petrol rationing, as well as blackouts. But as the conflict that Donald Trump said would be over in a flash enters its second month, I’m keeping busy by stockpiling basic necessities.

I’ve been throwing random cans of tinned food into supermarket trolleys. In the larder, I’ve now got more than 70 tins of baked beans, lentils, black beans, sweetcorn, sardines, tomato soup and spaghetti hoops.

Every time I go out, I grab a few more items. I’ve bought a battery-operated radio, and tea light candles in bulk. Now I’m in touch with other preppers – and a shop that sells everything needed for a blackout.

If the Iran war doesn’t end soon – and it’s not looking likely – it’s surely a rational response? Or am I going over the top?

War makes people to crazy things. I’ve just bought a portable solar-powered charging bank with an integrated torch and compass, costing £26. It can charge multiple devices simultaneously from sunlight at full speed: my phone and laptop. I can leave it on my windowsill and it’s ready for any emergency.

And I got a really stylish Danish solar-powered outdoor table lamp in olive for £44.95 that charges using sunlight during the day. I’m even stocking up on logs of wood to heat my two-bed flat in case I need to bash through the MDF wall behind my children’s bunk beds to uncover the hidden fireplace that was covered over to make the room more contemporary and spacious.

Seasoned wood (moisture content below 20 per cent) is crucial; it should sound hollow when knocked together. I have to store it in a dry place – so right now, that is the back of my car, as I haven’t found space for it elsewhere.

All this might sound extreme, but it’s an instinctual reaction to the global destruction I’m witnessing. I have two children, Lola, 10, and Liberty, seven, and I’d never forgive myself if I didn’t take some emergency measures – and a blackout happened.

A portable kerosene heater isn’t a bad idea either. I nearly bought a 50l cooler box yesterday that keeps contents cold for up to 12 days with no electricity – but I was put off by the £302 price tag.

I am now obsessed with a prepping website and intend to buy a big solar panel and power bank so I can really live off-grid in a national crisis. But what will the neighbours say? I’m already storing some tins of canned food under the garden table, as my cupboards aren’t big enough.

I tried to buy the Highlander Universal Survival Emergency Power Hub, which is a power bank, torch, radio and SOS alarm for £26.99, and has a built-in solar panel, hand-crank dynamo, or fast USB-C recharge unit, but it had sold out.

I think a lot of people are on the same page as me – and while a few weeks ago, before the US and Israel first attacked Iran on 28 February, it might have seemed over-the-top to buy into prepping, things have taken a dramatic turn for the worse. Part of me truly believes prepping is the only sensible course of action.

I’ve already stashed cash because, in the event of a power shortage, there won’t be any other way to pay for anything. My prepper dad friend, who has set himself up to live off-grid at his country house in Wales, gave me a few useful tips: always have a full tank of petrol in your car. Presumably, he won’t be surprised then if I turn up with the kids when we run out of food.

I’ve also been panic-buying extra batteries, torches and a couple of LED stakes. I have a stockpile of antibiotics that the kids never took, and a new first-aid kit, but my main aim is to build up to a three-month supply of food.

Of course, there is a lot I could buy that I haven’t – apart from portable power generators in all sizes, there are freeze-dried meals, including chilli con carne, gas masks and former military full-body NBC suits for nuclear, biological and chemical warfare.

A best-seller is a ration pack supply box that lasts one month, which includes 60 British military food pouches, with a vegan option costing £199.

I’m not a Mad Max-type, or even a pessimist, but things aren’t looking good, let’s face it – and I need to prepare for the worst if the lights go out.

Experts are warning that the UK could face a major oil and gas supply shortfall within months if the Middle East conflict persists.

Iran has blocked the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world’s daily liquefied natural gas (LNG) and oil supplies pass. That, along with attacks on oil and gas refineries across the Middle East by both sides in the war, is having catastrophic impacts on global energy supplies and prices.

We need gas to heat the 20 million UK homes that use natural gas central heating systems. It is also a major source for generating electricity. It was claimed that the UK had only two days of gas stored if we ran out. Luckily, it was only “dangerous scaremongering”, as the government reassured us. Yet the situation is unpredictable.

While it’s true that the UK gets the majority of its gas from domestic production in the North Sea and imports from Norway, and most of Britain’s imported oil arrives from the US and Norway, the global energy crisis is a moving picture – and everything has a knock-on effect.

That’s why I have spent about £400 on prepping in a week so far. This is only the start of my prepping journey. The Iran war is a wake-up call. While the bombing continues, and oil prices spike, I’m off to buy an LED hurricane lantern. Even if there isn’t a blackout, at least Lola can use all the equipment on her school camping trip.