King Charles plays ukulele on final day of NI trip

King Charles III has been in Newtownards, County Down for engagements on the final day of the royal visit to Northern Ireland.

The King visited Ards Allotments, which was founded by Maurice Patton after watching him visit an allotment on the news more than 20 years ago.

He also met the community of volunteers, gardeners and growers who use the allotment space to grow fresh produce as well as forging social connections.

Both the King and Queen Camilla were in County Down on Wednesday. The Queen met local businesses in Hillsborough, while the King travelled to the seaside town of Newcastle.

On Thursday, entertainment at the allotment was provided by the Loughries Men's Shed Ukulele Ensemble who performed a number of traditional folk songs and shanties.

As King Charles approached, he was offered a chance to play a ukulele and strummed along before chatting to members of the group, who invited him to their next rehearsal.

Meanwhile, Queen Camilla met survivors of domestic abuse and their children in Newtownards.

She also thanked a group of people who work and volunteer with the survivors, telling them the work they do is "more important than ever".

She was greeted at the venue by Emalyn Turkington, chief executive of Women's Aid in North Down and Ards, before speaking to people from agencies and organisations including the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI), food banks and Community NI.

She added: "It's lovely to see here all the agencies coming together, I think that's what is needed all over the country. Thank you very much."

Turkington thanked the Queen for meeting those gathered, especially the survivors of domestic abuse, adding said it was "important you heard their voice today".

Afterwards the royal couple visited The Warehouse community hub, before meeting well-wishers at a community celebration in Conway Square.

During their visit in Conway Square, hundreds turned out as they met local craftspeople and retailers.

Ice cream seller Michael Cafolla, whose business was started more than 100 years ago by his Italian immigrant grandfather, gave the Queen a cone of ice cream from a mobile cart, freshly made that morning.

She took a wafer to dip into the vanilla-flavoured treat and joked: "Can I stay here, can I stay and eat?" and quipped the cone was her "lunch".

At one point she handed it to her equerry then took it back to have some more ice cream before moving on to another stall.

Cafolla said afterwards: "We make a fresh batch of ice cream every morning. My grandfather Giuseppe would have whisked it by hand but now we use modern machinery.

"The Queen told me she could stay here a bit longer. It's amazing she came over and she really enjoyed it."

This is the King's 43rd visit to Northern Ireland, first as Prince of Wales and now as King.

On Monday, it was announced that he is due to make his first visit to the Republic of Ireland since becoming King.

No date has been confirmed but it is expected to take place next year.

The invitation came from Irish President Catherine Connolly, who has been on an official visit to England.

The King's mother, the late Queen Elizabeth II, paid a state visit to Ireland in 2011, the first by a British monarch since Irish independence.

The first visit by the King to Northern Ireland was back in 1961 with his mother, his father the Duke of Edinburgh and his sister Princess Anne.