Suzanne's Mom's Blog

Photo: Ardee Napolitano/Reuters.
The Bayeux tapestry will be on display in London from this September until July 2027.

Is there any event you would want tickets to badly enough to wait nine hours online? I’m wondering how the ticket buyers in today’s story filled that time. Did they just sit and wait? Try to read a book or attend a work meeting? Clean the house?

Lanre Bakare wrote at the Guardian, “People keen to see the Bayeux tapestry faced online queues of up to nine hours when tickets went on sale for the first time on Wednesday morning. …

“There were reports of 40,000 people queueing by mid-morning, with that figure ballooning to almost 80,000 by mid-afternoon. Those queueing online were told: ‘We’re currently experiencing high levels of demand. Booking online is still recommended however wait times may extend up to nine hours.’ …

“Ticket sales were for slots between September and December. Two other releases will follow in October and January for the remainder of the tapestry’s historic stay in Britain, which runs until July 2027.

“Tickets are priced at £33 [~$45] during peak times, which is more than triple the [charge] where it is normally on display in Normandy. … The museum’s director, Dr Nicholas Cullinan, defended the ticket prices in advance of the sale. He told BBC Radio 4’s Today program … ‘The majority of tickets are off-peak, so they’re less, and all children under 16 will see it for free. We felt it was very important to make this something that all young people have access to.’

“The tapestry’s arrival in Britain is one of the most anticipated cultural moments of the year and is closely tied to the soft-power agendas of Britain and France.

“In exchange for allowing the British Museum to show the tapestry – which is almost 1,000 years old and depicts William the Conqueror’s victory over King Harold II of England at Hastings in 1066 – the Lewis chessmen, the Sutton Hoo helmet, the Mold gold cape and the Dunaverney flesh hook will travel to Normandy.

“The 70-meter-long [~230-foot] cloth has not been seen in England since it was created in the 11th century, and has been insured for [more than $1 billion] before the British Museum exhibition. …

“The French president, Emmanuel Macron, has faced a backlash for allowing the loan to go ahead, with critics saying he ignored expert advice that said the artifact was too fragile to be transported to the UK. French campaigners sought to block the loan by taking their case to the Conseil d’État, France’s highest court for determining the legitimacy of executive power.

“Despite those efforts, the tapestry joins France’s 1963 loan of the Mona Lisa to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York as one of the most high-profile loans ever.

“It will be transported in a specially designed container made to absorb any shocks and vibrations from potholes, and humidity levels will be closely monitored. …

“The first release of tickets have now sold out.”

More at the Guardian, here.