DESPITE a last minute rush to finish the Westgate, the 'missing piece of Oxford's jigsaw' was completed yesterday as thousands of shoppers explored the long-awaited centre.

Hordes of curious visitors flooded into the new £440m centre when it opened just after 9am yesterday.

But just hours earlier contractors were still working away to transform it from a building site into a fully-functioning shopping centre.

When morning came, the Alice in Wonderland theme was in full flow as the Mad Hatter and the White Rabbit and Alice herself entertained shoppers before dignitaries from Oxford City Council, the Crown Estate and Land Securities officially opened the centre.

John Lewis and Primark cut their ribbons shortly after as the new public space Leiden Square became a hive of activity.

An acrobat attached to a giant balloon then floated around the square shaking hands with bemused shoppers, who then filled up the 60 shops and restaurants.

The centre's general manager Brendan Hattam said: "It will make Oxford a stronger retail city for everybody, including those in the Covered Market and High Street.

"It's the missing piece of the jigsaw in the city - we have the heritage, we have the culture and now we have the shopping centre.

"It was amazing to see the number of people here and also the looks on their faces when they saw the scale and the quality of it.

He added: "It has taken a long time but I think that's a good thing but it's got a better design and character to it."

Mr Hattam said building work continuing right up to the last minute was 'quite normal' for large shopping centre project and was thrilled with the opening day.

Crepes 'O' Mania, which began in University Parks and has now moved to Broad Street, was one of the three local firms - along with Blackwell's and Burrows and Hare - to open in the Westgate yesterday.

Owner Akim Akkouche said: "It's a fantastic opportunity for us - we were offered this position and we are thrilled - we had so many people here on the opening day.

"It's hugely important for people to see a locally based company and we are one of only two or three independents."

But Mr Akkouche said it was touch and go as to whether the centre would be ready on time, with work continuing throughout the night.

He said: "We are just happy to be open really, the team fitting our kiosk said it would take five days and they only turned up on Sunday afternoon.

"When I left the centre at 1am before the opening, it was still a building site and when I came back at 5.30am there was still machinery on site.

"But they said it would be ready and it was.

Brothers Thom and James Elliot, co-founders of the rooftop Pizza Pilgrims, also had a tense morning with their plates arriving just minutes before opening.

Thom Elliot said: "We got our plates 21 minutes before we were meant to open.

"This morning they had to get deliveries and of course there are more than 100 shops and restaurants - but they did an incredible job to get it done in time.

"I can't believe how many people we had in throughout day as well."

Planning permission was granted for the project in 2014 but the wait for a new retail hub goes back much further.

Lord Mayor Jean Fooks, who opened the centre, said: "In my first speech at full council when I was elected in 1992 I said we needed to replace the Westgate shopping centre.

"It has taken 25 years but we have a wonderful new shopping centre which I hope will bring more visitors into the city and explore the other parts such as the castle quarter and the Covered Market.

"I haven't heard of any traffic issues today but I hope people use the Park and Ride to avoid congestion problems."

Another long-serving councillor Colin Cook said: "We have always been punching below our weight in terms of retail but this is absolutely what the city needs.

"It will stop people driving further afield to Reading and Milton Keynes.

"There was a great atmosphere and it's lovely to see it open."