In his first stop in Denain, one of France’s poorest towns in a region where Ms Le Pen is a councillor, Mr Macron was taken to task during a marathon walkabout, first by an irate ex-gilet jaune (yellow vest) who screamed: “Anti-Macron” before being led away.

Another shouted: “Macron resign!” while two women claimed they felt he had treated them like “sub-humans” when he said that he wanted to “p— off” French citizens who refused to get vaccinated against Covid.

“That was a term of affection,” he said, prompting incredulous laughter from the pair. 

Some members of the public, however, cried: “Macron president!”

Speaking to a scrum of journalists that followed him, he said: “I’m not going to pretend nothing happened. I have heard the message from those who voted for the extremes, including those who voted for Ms Le Pen.” 

The National Rally candidate, he said, “feeds off past failures, de-industrialisation and misery that has taken root”.

“I realise that people will vote for me to stop her, but I want to convince people. So I may possibly round out my project” with more social welfare measures, he said.