For the first time in almost 1,000 years
70 metres of linen and wool. 58 embroidered scenes. The story of 1066 and the Norman Conquest of England.
10 September 2026 – 11 July 2027
until the exhibition opens · 10 September 2026
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The countdown is on
The Tapestry is in London. It has crossed the Channel, settled into its temporary home at the British Museum and is almost ready to meet the British public.
There are some exhibitions you hear about, think that sounds interesting, and perhaps remember to visit if you happen to be nearby.
This is not one of those exhibitions.
For generations, British schoolchildren have met 1066 through pictures of William, Harold, ships, horses, a comet and one very famous arrow. Now the real embroidery is here, on British soil, and the rush for tickets has already shown just how much this moment means.
You do not simply roll up the Bayeux Tapestry, tuck it under somebody's arm and head for London. Before the original was moved, specialists rehearsed the operation with a facsimile, testing the awkward turns and the conditions that might affect something made in the eleventh century.
Which seems sensible. Nobody wants to be the person who asks, “Has anyone checked whether it fits around that corner?” when the Bayeux Tapestry is already halfway there.
The Tapestry has appeared in our schoolbooks, documentaries, museums, magazines and probably more tea towels than anyone could sensibly count. But a reproduction is one thing. Standing in front of the real thing is another.
Very soon, people from across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will be able to do exactly that.
So what happened on the journey from Bayeux? How was a nearly 1,000-year-old embroidery protected all the way to London? And what exactly is waiting behind the museum doors?
That is where we stop. For now.
On 10 September, when the doors open, we will tell the full story.
Not long now. Very soon, the waiting ends.
The Bayeux Tapestry is one of the most remarkable surviving artefacts from the Middle Ages. Created in the 1070s, within a decade of the events it depicts, it tells the story of the Norman Conquest of England in 1066 through 58 embroidered scenes on a strip of linen nearly 70 metres long.
The narrative begins with Edward the Confessor, King of England, sending Harold Godwinson on a mission to Normandy. It shows Harold's shipwreck, his meeting with Duke William of Normandy, and the famous oath Harold swears to William, an oath whose breaking would later be used to justify William's invasion of England.
The tapestry culminates in the Battle of Hastings on 14 October 1066, where Harold is killed and William claims the English throne. The final scenes show the English in flight and the Normans in pursuit, though the tapestry's ending is now lost or incomplete.
For nearly a thousand years, the Bayeux Tapestry has remained in France. Its journey to the British Museum in 2026 will mark the first time it has been displayed in Britain since the events it depicts, a once-in-a-millennium opportunity to see this masterpiece on the soil where the story unfolded.
Discover the key moments embroidered into this medieval masterpiece
Harold swears an oath to William, a pivotal moment that would later be used to justify the Norman invasion.
Explore this scene →Halley's Comet appears in 1066, interpreted as an omen of doom for King Harold and the English.
Explore this scene →The climactic battle on 14 October 1066, where Harold falls and William claims the English throne.
Explore this scene →Dive deeper into the history behind the tapestry
The year that changed England forever. Three battles, two invasions, and three kings in twelve months.
Read the full timeline →The patron, the designer, and the embroiderers. What we know, what we guess, and what we will never know.
Read the article →14 October 1066. How the battle unfolded, hour by hour, from the first arrow to the last stand.
Read the article →Nearly a thousand years of wars, revolutions, and close calls. The story of the tapestry's extraordinary survival.
Read the article →The last Anglo-Saxon king. Warrior, politician, oath-breaker, tragic hero.
Read the article →The Bayeux Tapestry is normally kept in Bayeux, Normandy, France.
The British Museum exhibition is scheduled to run from 10 September 2026 to 11 July 2027.
No. Although it is known as the Bayeux Tapestry, it is technically embroidery, stitched in wool thread onto linen cloth.
The tapestry is commonly divided into 58 scenes, although scene numbering can vary depending on the source or guide being used.