The Bayeux Tapestry has gone on public display outside France for the first time in its 1,000-year history, opening today at the British Museum in London to sold-out crowds. The 11th-century embroidery, which depicts the Norman conquest of England and the Battle of Hastings, has left France for the first time since it was made, in what has been described as an extraordinary transfer operation, and its arrival has sparked widespread public excitement dubbed "Bayeux mania".

The 230ft-long tapestry is displayed in a bespoke glass case, with ticket holders given 40 minutes to view it from an elevated platform before descending for a closer look at the stitching. The exhibition, expected to draw around 7.5 million visitors over the next ten months, has drawn praise from early attendees for its vivid colours and intricate detail, though some complained of a rushed, "conveyor belt" experience. Believed to have been stitched by English seamstresses before being taken to France, the artefact is being kept under strict conservation and security measures throughout its UK stay.