A UNIQUE county church which has undergone 12 years and thousands of pounds worth of restoration work was the subject of a royal visit this morning.

St John the Evangelist in Shobdon – famed for its early Gothic revival interior – has received quite a facelift in recent years.

His Royal Highness, Prince Charles, has an important part in the church's history over recent years, having made what church officials describe as a generous donation to "set the ball rolling" in a £500,000 appeal.

It was while visiting at the start of the campaign that he made his donation, and he returned to the church he helped transform today.

His Royal Highness met with conservation architects, fundraisers and volunteers involved with the project during his visit.

Rector, revd. Brenda Jacobs, Brenda Jacobs, said: “It went really well. The weather was dire but inside the atmosphere was great. We managed to get all the people there that had been involved over the years.

“Then we went outside and the school children came down and he stopped and spoke to them.

“He came ten years ago and helped us kick start the whole process of getting the funding together and gave generously. It was lovely for him to come and see the results. He seemed to really appreciate the work, asking technical questions and so on.”

He also visited The Judges Lodging in Presteigne and Maesyronnen Chapel in Hay-on-Wye.

There will be more photos and details of Prince Charles' visit to the county in next week's edition of the Hereford Times.