The Queen in Manchester to open Co-op 'green' headquarters
The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh have visited Manchester to officially open the world's "greenest" office.
The royal party arrived at Manchester Piccadilly train station slightly late on the royal train, before travelling by car to One Angel Square.
A plaque was unveiled at the Co-operative's £100m 14-storey headquarters, which houses 3,500 staff.
The royal visit then continued to the Factory Youth Zone, in Harpurhey, to meet staff and members.
The visit marked the 150th anniversary of the Co-operative movement, which now employs 95,000 people in the UK.
The Queen pulled the cord opening the new headquarters to a round of applause before Prince Philip joked: "Back to work!"
Several hundred wellwishers, including many schoolchildren, lined up in the sunshine to greet the Queen and the duke in Rochdale Road, Harpurhey, opposite The Factory Youth Zone.
The youth charity provides sport and art activities for about 2,500 young people aged between eight and 21 in one of the city's most deprived wards.
Michelle Field, who has two children who use the youth zone, said the royal visit was "fantastic for the area".
She said: "The Queen only visits important places and isn't often in Manchester so it's exciting that she has chosen to visit Harpurhey."