SOPHIE, Countess of Wessex, opened a £3.2m hospice wing yesterday, before visiting a farmers' market and browsing a collection of paintings once owned by the Queen Mother.

The Countess, who is married to Prince Edward, cut the ribbon to open a ten-bed inpatient wing at St Cuthbert's Hospice, in Durham, after meeting and chatting with nurses and patients.

She then travelled to The Bowes Museum, in Barnard Castle, County Durham, to visit a farmers' market and open the museum's Streatlam Galleries.

The Countess, who wore a cream silk coat with silk collar and cuffs, was also shown an exhibition of watercolour paintings from the collection of the late Queen Mother.

The new wing at St Cuthbert's Hospice provides the facility's first overnight beds. The hospice has been providing day care for people with life-limiting illnesses since 1988 and costs £1.5m a year to run.

Angela Dinsdale, the hospice's chief executive, said: "The staff and volunteers were really looking forward to the Countess' visit. Anything that we can do to thank them is a good thing."

The Countess was given a tour of the hospice, during which she met staff and patients, and witnessed the dedication of a hospice garden.

She was given a bouquet of flowers by Tanya Elton, a senior nurse in the new inpatient unit.

Patricia Dunn, 66, from Bowburn, who has been a patient in the new unit, said: "It's beautiful. Nothing's too much for the staff. The friendship you get here at the hospice is marvellous.

"We have a happy atmosphere, and the staff are more friends than staff."

At The Bowes Museum, the Countess toured a farmers' market, talking to stall holders and councillors.

Tracy Betney, from Broom Mill Farm, West Auckland, said: "The Countess was very nice. She tried some of our West Auckland Toulouse Sausage. She said it was excellent that we were diversifying and seemed very interested."