A crowd of 500 greeted the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh as they arrived in Oxford today.

People lined Radcliffe Square where the royal couple were met by Oxford's new Lord Mayor Val Smith and the Lord Lieutenant of Oxfordshire Hugo Brunner.

They walked along a line of University representatives headed by Chancellor Lord Jenkins of Hillhead before entering the University Church of St Mary the Virgin in High Street for a thanksgiving service to mark University College's 750th anniversary.

After a 40-minute service, the Queen, dressed in a buttercup-yellow coat and yellow straw hat, met the cheering crowds as she went walkabout from the church to the Bodleian Library to see an exhibition of the college's history. Then it was on to the college itself, where they were scheduled to meet students, staff and their families in the Junior Common Room.

Jamie Mold, seven, whose family has worked at the college for three generations, was to present the Queen with a posy.

The Queen holds the title of Visitor of the College but it is the first time she has been there since her Coronation - her last visit was in 1948.

Later, the Queen was attending the Union Street Education Complex in east Oxford to watch a performance of traditional Asian dance and song. She was also due to see Oxford United footballers practising with an Asian boys team. Meanwhile, the Duke was visiting the science and engineering laboratories at Oxford Brookes University in Headington.

The Royal visit was a baptism of fire for Oxford's new Lord Mayor Val Smith - her first engagement just hours after taking office last night.

Her husband Andrew, MP for Oxford East and the Government's Employment Minister, said he was delighted for himself, his wife and the city.

He said: "It will bring a lot of joy to a lot of people to have the Queen visiting Oxford once again."

Story date: Friday 21 May

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