Bayeux tapestry to arrive in London in secret

British Museum has already sold a record 100,000 tickets for Sept 10 exhibit

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AFP July 10, 2026 1 min read

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LONDON:

The 1,000-year-old Bayeux Tapestry depicting the last successful military invasion of England will arrive in London in the coming days by dead of night and under "police protection", the UK envoy helping to coordinate the historic transfer told AFP.

But Peter Ricketts, the UK's Bayeux Tapestry envoy, remained coy about the exact date the "incredibly fragile object" would arrive from its home in northern France for a major exhibition at the British Museum. "We don't want any untoward incidents happening" he said.

"We're keeping the exact details and date confidential," Ricketts explained, describing the high-security operation around the 11th century work. "When it's ready to be exhibited, we want millions of people to see it," the Britain's former ambassador to France added.

The clandestine arrangements have done little to dampen enthusiasm. Ricketts said he was "not at all surprised" that the British Museum sold a record 100,000 tickets on the first day of sales for the exhibition, set to open on September 10 and run until July 11, 2027.

"Every British child knows the date of 1066, the Battle of Hastings," when England's King Harold was defeated by the Norman invader William the Conqueror, depicted in the 68-metre (224-feet) long tapestry, he said. "Most people don't know the tapestry, most people haven't been to Bayeux," to see it, said Ricketts.

Embroidered in wool thread, the tapestry tells its story in words and images, but its origins have remained shrouded in some mystery and much speculation. This is the first time the tapestry, which usually rests in a museum in Bayeux in northwestern Normandy, will be transported to and displayed in the UK.

For its cross-Channel journey, the tapestry has been "folded up like a curtain" and "put in a very, very high-tech container" with climate and vibration controls to protect the delicate embroidery. The complicated transfer of the tapestry, which was promised by French President Emmanuel Macron in a loan, is the result of more than a year of negotiations for the former ambassador