Anyone Have Tickets For The Bayeux Tapestry?

Saw it in France, it was interesting but not the best bit about being in France lol !

I shalln’t be able to see it, but did watch, on iPlayer, “Secrets of the Bayeux Tapestry - Inside the museum” that interweaves the story of the tapestry and the Norman Conquest with the extraordinary lengths the British museum has gone to in order to stage this exhibition. The technology and engineering involved are astonishing. Yes the pop-up historians are annoying but it’s a great watch.

Like many others here I have seen it in Bayeux. My brother lives 20 minutes drive from Bayeux so he took me when I was visiting several years ago. If I were younger I might go for the second look but it is really long and my legs don't work so well now. I didn't realise it is now being shown horizontally. I think it is probably easier to view upright but maybe it would have been too difficult/time consuming/expensive to make a suitable upright framework for it while it is on loan.

I'm quite far oop north and am going to see it in October.
I was in the online queue for about 8 hours the day the tickets went on sale, but you're notified when you get to the front of the queue and can then go back in and buy your tickets.
We are making trip for a few days and will see some other exhibitions while we're in London, we have tickets for a Renoir exhibition at the national gallery too.

I saw it in France many years ago but was with our children who were a bit too young to appreciate it so we just went through fairly quickly. I have been to see the replica in the Reading museum which is obviously less impressive as it is less old but is worth a visit it you aren't too far away. We had a trip out with the group of friends who stitch together and we are fairly local so could go on the community minibus. Our group applied for tickets to see the real thing but were unsuccessful. Maybe we'll be lucky with the next lot of allocations though I'm not sure I'm up to extensive queueing.

I saw it too in France whilst on a camping holiday in 1983.

Would like to see it again, but can’t be doing with all the queues etc.

I saw it in France and to be honest I was underwhelmed.

There is also a woman in Cambridgeshire who is doing an exact replica, due to be finished next year. This is a fascinating article:
www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/crmd3dw98p3o

In Wisbech, Mia Hansson, who's 51, has been meticulously sewing her own faithful replica for the last nine and a half years. She says the impending arrival of the real thing has spurred her to stick to her completion deadline of October 2027.

Mia began her work on an authentic stitch-by-stitch copy of the original 11th Century embroidery in 2016. Since then, she has been working at a steady rate of 6m (20ft) a year.

I think she is hoping they will use the glass case at the British Museum to display her tapestry as it's an exact replica!

Unfortunately it's completely booked up, but there is a beautiful Victorian replica in Reading Museum Berkshire

I agree the Reading replica is a great alternative ...and free

I saw it in Bayeux. I thought it was great, and enjoyed the town of Bayeux too,

Living in Kent I was taken to see it more than once while in France.
I would go again but only if some of the family want to see it

Thanks for the tip about Reading Museum. I was a French teacher and took Year 10s on trips to Normandy over many years. So I've seen the original in Bayeux often, but was usually too busy herding pupils to look properly at the tapestry. So I think a trip to Reading would make sense.
One more thing: if you live anywhere near Portsmouth, do go and see the Overlord tapestry, made after WW2 to commemorate the D-day landings. I find it very moving.

no - saw it in France

You can see a perfect Victorian replica in Reading town hall. Embroidered by many women over many months. You can book a tour.

Just to reinforece the comment from Aldom (possibly more by now) that there is an exact copy at READING Museum, you can pay for a guided tour, or visit yourself for free.

For those criticising the British Museum, they're made mistakes in the past with some exhibitions, but this one was shown on TV to have the line of people shuffling gently past, they've put some thought into the numbers and viewing logistics.

And the Tapestry is displayed that way here because that's how the French suggested it was done, to best maintain it.

Due to cost of going to London, health etc, queuing with a bad back and no where to sit is going to be a problem, but if I do decide to go it will be after christmas. Whatever exhibition I go to see I let the mad first rush go first, that way you often get a better experience, with people who genuinely like and are knowledgeable about the subject rather than the first rush which can be a "want to see the latest thing" rather than specifically for the particular thing. Ah in those long ago days I too queued for Tutenkamun etc etc, and of course for many wonderful Art shows, from my particular area of the Impressionists to the Cezanne and the wonderful David Hockney especially the are round Warter, which I know quite well and have wandered round there looking to see where he actually painted from etc. One of my best memories is going to the Dordogne camping with the family so about 50 years ago when were were able to go into the caves and see the wonderful pictures there. The one really enduring one that I loved was of a buffalo where the artist had used a pump in the cave wall to become the hump. The ability to see the possibility of making their drawing more lifelike always stayed with me thinking of their ability to see possibilities . I loved visiting it and now of course it is closed so very happy for the memories.

So at the moment I shall not be booking for the Bayeaux but will be checking out the possibilities later. I enjoy meeting people and am quite social, but when it comes to looking at pictures and going to galleries or into old houses, I am definitely of the be by yourself category. When I used to go to italy to see pictures in Rome or Florence, my way was to be the first in the queue for the opening of the doors, dressed in sensible clothes and sturdy boots, with everything in my rucksack. I used to go especially in February, when there were less tourists about and then in florence, would be ready at the earliest, enjoy the galleries, whilst they were quiet and then get on a bus to somewhere like fiesole about midday and enjoy wandering about in peace and quiet. Well happy visiting for those going sooner, Let us know any good tips for ways to enjoy it more and how you fared in the queue.

I saw it in Bayeux a few years ago. Rather wonderful and I think it was free to see.

As I mentioned, if you wait until next year there will hopefully be a brand new exact replica in the exact same display cabinets at the British Museum, made by the Wisbech lady. I rather like the idea of having beautiful new threads as it will be like stepping back in time.

Yes! I’m going! I took my children to see it many years ago and now I’m looking forward to taking my grandchildren. I have tickets for half term in October. I think I was number 57,000& something in the queue but it was well managed.

I'd love to see it again, but alas. Agree that seeing it flat seems odd but that must have been dictated by France.

Bayeux Tapestry ticket-holders have been evacuated from the British Museum after a suspected fire.

Reports of smoke in a gallery prompted fire alarms to be set off at the museum on Friday evening.

The London Fire Brigade said it suspected the source of the smoke was an “overheating light”.

Nearly 4,000 people were evacuated from the building until the all-clear was given an hour later.

I bet Macron (and us) were having kittens this evening!

I’d love to see it, but I’m not up to it However I have a very beautiful book with reproductions of all the sections, and explanatory notes. The more you know about it, the more you can enjoy it.