Thousands are flocking to churches around the country to view the relics of St Bernadette, who is said to have been visited by the Virgin Mary in Lourdes.

Hundreds of people have visited the relics of St Bernadette following its arrival in Belfast as part of a pilgrimage across the island of Ireland. Large queues snaked around St Mary’s Church on Chapel Lane on Tuesday with the first people gathering from around 9.

Queues of parishioners gathered outside St Mary’s Church on Chapel Lane in Belfast to see the relics of St Bernadette as they arrived in the city for the first time.

Large crowds gathered to view the relics of St Bernadette following their arrival in Belfast. Queues formed at St Mary’s Church on Chapel Lane on Tuesday to view the relics. The relics are on tour from Lourdes in France, where they attract millions of Catholic pilgrims each year.