The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have visited a hospital in Norfolk to mark the NHS’s birthday.

William and Kate met staff at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in King’s Lynn, 72 years to the day since the creation of the health service.

The royal couple shared afternoon tea with doctors, nurses and other staff at the hospital which will celebrate its own 40th birthday later this month.

The hospital, which serves more than 330,000 people across Norfolk, Cambridgeshire and Lincolnshire, has treated 450 patients with Covid-19.

A total of 46 patients have been recruited to the Covid-19 recovery trial, and more than 500 are involved in other coronavirus research.