Bayeux Tapestry Ticket Queues Hit 9 Hours as 80,000 Chase British Museum Slots
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Jul 1
Bayeux Tapestry Ticket Queues Hit 9 Hours as 80,000 Chase British Museum Slots
3 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Jul 1
Summary
Nine-hour waits hit the British Museum’s ticketing site on Wednesday as demand for Bayeux Tapestry entry surged from about 40,000 people in the queue by mid-morning to nearly 80,000 by mid-afternoon.
Tickets released covered September to December dates for the exhibition’s run through July 2027, with the museum urging buyers to stay online rather than use its exceptionally busy phone lines or email inbox.
Peak tickets cost £33 and off-peak entry £27, pricing director Nicholas Cullinan defended by noting most tickets are cheaper and under-16s will enter free; the show could bring in more than £8.6 million.
The 70-metre, nearly 1,000-year-old tapestry has not been seen in England since its creation and is being loaned from France in exchange for British treasures traveling to Normandy, despite French criticism over moving the fragile work.