Tesco Express officially opens in former Mary Rose and Dragon pub in Old Portsmouth

A ribbon cutting ceremony has marked the opening of a brand new Tesco Express in Old Portsmouth.

The Tesco Express was officially opened by MP Stephen Morgan who cut the ribbon to confirm that the store is officially in operation.

Jilla Nasser, the store manager of the new Tesco Express store, said: “I started my journey at Tesco six years ago when I was studying teaching and I just loved it – I decided I wanted to progress and came across a shift leader position a year ago.

"I then applied for the new store manager here and I was really excited to be back in Portsmouth because of the community and it is really exciting and I am really excited for this and I think it is going to be a great success.

"The turnout has been great today. I didn’t think we would get as many people as we did but we can clearly tell that this store is going to be really important for the local community and the neighbourhood so yeah, I am really excited and I think it is going to be great.”

Here are 13 pictures from the opening: