A WHISTLE-STOP visit to a North-East food factory went with a banger for a royal visitor yesterday.

Prince Charles' helicopter touched down at Teesside Industrial Estate, in Thornaby, for his visit to Mr Lazenby's sausage factory almost an hour behind schedule.

But he still made time for a few words with staff from a neighbouring factory, who had gathered in the hope of a glimpse.

At Mr Lazenby's, he was given a tour by managing director Valda Morris and then taken into the test kitchen, where he met product development workers Jackie Gallagher and Jennifer Bertie.

They had prepared some rosemary and herb sausages made at the factory for the Prince's own Duchy Originals range of organic products.

As the princely palette enjoyed the samples, photographers snapped away at the royal taste test, causing His Royal Highness to blush and joke with the assembled Press.

The visit also marked the official opening of Mr Lazenby's unit for the production of cooked products, and the Prince unveiled a plaque to mark the occasion. The factory has undergone a £1m expansion.