Sunderland welcomes the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge

It’s a massive day for Sunderland as the city welcomes royalty!

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have been in the North East where they've officially opened the Fire Station and taken a look at the Northern Spire bridge, that's set to open later this Spring.

The royal couple was cheered by around 500 people as they went on a walkabout outside The Fire Station - a landmark building in the city centre which has been transformed into an £3.5 million cultural hub.

Wearing a green Dolce & Gabbana coat over a Seraphine black and white dress, the duchess chatted with families waiting outside and made a point of talking to the children acting as mini-policemen in uniform by the barricades.

Kate smiled as she told some of those waiting the weather was much better than it had been in London.

As they went inside, the duke and duchess sat down with children at a storytelling workshop - William sitting on floor among the children but joking that his wife "might need a chair''

Kate did sit on a chair as she chatted to Mason Redman, 10, and Alex Carter, nine, about how much they like Harry Potter.

William left telling the children to keep on working on their stories about "ants and broccoli''.

The royal couple then watched a dance and circus skills class.

The duchess told Nicole Coates, 12, and Theresa Dunn, 11, both from Sunderland, what they were doing on the silks and trapeze was "incredible''. She said: "I haven't seen that before'' to the girls from Sunderland's Dance City group.

Nicole said: "I just want to perform and dance. I don't want to work in an office - that's someone else's dream.''

The girls also chatted with Kate and William about Cirque du Soleil

The Duke and Duchess will then travel to the Northern Spire - the 1550 tonne structure taller than Big Ben - which local leaders hope will change transport in the city, attract new jobs and investment, and bring regeneration to the city.

The 1,550-tonne pylon bridge is the second part of the Sunderland Strategic Transport Corridor - a five-phase plan to improve links between the A19 and Sunderland city centre and the Port of Sunderland.

The Northern Spire - named following a public vote - will help reduce congestion around the city, speed up car journeys and allow land along both sides of the River Wear to be regenerated and developed.

The Sunderland City Council project - due to be completed this spring - was built over three years and cost £117 million, with the Government contributing around two-thirds of the funds and the council the rest.

David Abdy, Project Director, said:

"I think they're really interested on what's going on in the North East and they're very keen to get involved.

"I think also there's a general interest in this kind of big infrastructure project but whatever reasons there are, we're very delighted to have them with us."