FOLLOWING the Queen's husband, Prince Philip, we are looking back at royal visit to Sussex in 2013.

Newhaven came to a standstill during their whistle-stop tour of the county.

Her Majesty was shown around the town’s West Quay Fisheries before being introduced to members of the local RNLI.

Well-wishers young and old had waited in the dark from early in the morning to secure the best positions along the quayside.

But the weather hadn’t read the script – and a sea of umbrellas stretched as far as the eye could see.

Then, at 10.30am, as the royal helicopter sounded overhead, the clouds parted and the rain ceased.

Minutes later a roar went up as a lavish black Bentley, flanked by police motorbikes and Range Rovers, approached.

At 10.45am, as scheduled, the petite figure of the Queen emerged. Dressed in a bright pink coat, pink hat and black shoes, Her Majesty injected some much needed colour to the dreary morning.

And with the Duke loyally in tow, the pair headed into the family fish shop.

Pat Vowles, 65, from Peacehaven, was at the front with her granddaughter, Hannah, 21.

She said: “It’s not every day the Queen comes to town so I didn’t want to miss it.

“She could have gone to much bigger towns such as Brighton or Eastbourne but she chose Newhaven. That means a lot.”

Hannah added: “There are so many people here both young and old – that shows the appeal she has.”

The crowds waited patiently for 15 minutes as the Queen and Duke quizzed the Bickerstaff family, who run the family fisheries business, on the day’s catch.

The Argus: Prince Philip visits a fishmarket in Newhaven Prince Philip visits a fishmarket in Newhaven

Then, with their next appointment beckoning, they re-appeared to an impromptu rendition of God Save The Queen.

Ian Bickerstaff said: “What a lovely couple. “They were so interested in the fish and were asking where they came from and when they were caught.

“They wanted to know about our world and that was a real honour.”

The visit comes on the back of a tough week for the town with teenager Dylan Alkins still missing at sea.

Both the Queen and Duke addressed the issue when meeting with representatives of the coastguard and RNLI and congratulated them on their hero- ics.

Paul Legendre, a mechanic with the Newhaven RNLI crew, said: “The Queen told me how she had seen some of the footage on the TV and thanked us for our work. It’s nice to know.

“I didn’t need to say anything, she started talking to me about it.

“They were both just so lovely. There were some real nerves in that room when they arrived but they both put everyone at ease instantly."