Celebrations as new shops open

Crowds of shoppers cheered as Whiteley Shopping Centre was declared open this morning, creating more than 1,000 jobs.

Blue and white confetti was thrown into the air after the countdown and shoppers rushed into the brand new stores.

Several shops celebrated in their own way; staff at Marks and Spencer gave out free Prosecco and Schuh gave store vouchers in exchange for shoppers' old pairs of shoes.

There was a range of street performers to entertain the crowds, including two dancing grannies, balloon making for children and two men rowing a gondola along the street.

Celebrity mum and TV personality Denise Van Outen opened the Mama and Papas store in front of crowds of people.

Hundreds of shoppers followed Denise into the store where she read advice from her parenting book Bumpalicious and answered customers' questions.

The centre proved extremely popular, with thousands turning out to see the new shops.

The shopping centre's success could be seen by the full car parks and by midday, the traffic tailed back to the motorway.