TOWNS and cities across the UK will fall silent at 11.30am as the nation mourns the Queen Mother.

Normally bustling workplaces, shopping centres and factories will come to a standstill as the funeral begins.

Announcements will be made at train and bus stations to give passengers a chance to pay their respects.

In the North-East, many supermarkets are closing for the morning.

Branches of Marks and Spencer, Tesco, Sainsbury's and Asda will be shut during the funeral.

The Greenwoods chain of menswear stores will be closed. Its branches include Durham, Darlington, Bishop Auckland and Chester-le-Street.

The North-Eastern and Cumbrian Co-op's 140 shops will be open, but will observe a two-minute silence.

Binns, in Darlington, will be closed until 1pm.

The House of Fraser store, in Darlington, is allowing staff to watch the funeral in two set-aside areas.

Workers have also been given the chance to take the day off in their own time, if they wish.

The Prince Bishops Shopping Centre, in Durham, will hold a two-minute silence at 11.30am.

Next, Evans and Superdrug are among stores planning to close for the morning, or during the funeral.

Although the Cornmill Shopping Centre, in Darlington, will stay open, management said a number of shops were expected to close for the funeral.

The Gateshead MetroCentre will open as normal, though some shops may be closed for the duration of the funeral.

Staff and shoppers will hold a two-minute silence at 11.30 am.

Shopping centres in Middlesbrough will stay open, although a number of shops in each of the precincts will be closed for the funeral.

Both the Cleveland Centre and the Hill Street Centre will observe a two-minute silence at 11.30am.

North Ormesby Market, in Middlesbrough, will observe a minute's silence at 11.30am.

National Trust gardens and parks are to stay open, to allow visitors space for contemplation.

At Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal, near Ripon, North Yorkshire, the abbey, water garden and deer park will be open, with no admission fees.

The stately home at Castle Howard, near Malton, North Yorkshire, will be closed, but the grounds will be open free of charge.

English Heritage properties will be closed until after 2pm.

The region's crown and county courts will not hold any hearings, although they will be open for other business, such as making a claim.

Magistrates' courts in County Durham will be closed, although remand hearings for prisoners will be held at Peterlee and Sedgefield.

Rail passengers will be asked to fall silent as two-minute silences are observed on mainline stations.

GNER's stations at Darlington, Durham, Newcastle and York will stop at 11.30 am. Trains will leave when the silence ends.

Buses will pull over at 11.30am so drivers and passengers can join the rest of country in mourning.

Durham University and Durham Cathedral will hold a minute's silence at 11.30am. The cathedral's flag will be at half-mast until after the funeral.

It will be business as usual for Durham County Council, although there will be a two-minute silence at 11.30 am.

"We have got our books of condolence at County Hall and on the Internet, the flag is at half-mast and the chairman and chief executive have written a letter of sympathy to the Queen," said a spokesman.

Darlington Borough Council has cancelled all meetings at the Town Hall, but the council's public buildings will stay open.

A flare will be fired from the headquarters of Sunderland City Council at 11.30 am, marking the start of a minute's silence.

People will be able to place floral tributes on North Terrace.

Durham City Council will hold a two-minute silence at 11.30am.

Derwentside, Wear Valley Gateshead, Redcar and Cleveland, Sedgefield Borough, Stockton and Chester-le-Street councils will all observe silences during the funeral.

The flag will be flown at half-mast at Gateshead Civic Centre.

Staff at Newcastle City Council will observing a two-minute silence at 11.30am.

The Chapel and Avenue at Gibside Estate, between Burnopfield, County Durham, and Rowlands Gill, will be open for people wishing to pay tribute.

The estate is the ancestral home of the Bowes-Lyon family.

In Stockton, hundreds of people have signed books of condolence, which are open at public libraries.

Hundreds have also signed Hartlepool's book of condolence, in the Civic Centre.

Six saplings will be planted in memory of the Queen Mother in Saltburn, by local councillors Barbara Harpham, Joan Sands and John Robinson.