The Story of the Bayeux Tapestry: Unravelling the Norman Conquest

Join Lead Curator of the Bayeux Tapestry exhibition at the British Museum, Michael Lewis, and historian David Musgrove for the definitive guide to the Bayeux Tapestry and the extraordinary narrative behind its stitches.

Political intrigue and treachery, heroism and brutal violence, victory and defeat all this is depicted in the Bayeux Tapestry, an epic account of a pivotal moment in English history. However, there is much more to this remarkable historical and artistic treasure, which tells its tale with an intensity and immediacy that speak to our modern world.  

Now Michael Lewis, the lead curator of the British Museum’s momentous Bayeux Tapestry Exhibition, and bestselling author and historian David Musgrove join us for unravel the mysteries of this extraordinary artwork.  

Who made it, and when, why, where and what for? David and Michael will set the events depicted in the context of the machinations on either side of the English Channel in the years leading up to the Norman Conquest and tease out what the Tapestry tells us of the deeds of kings as well as aspects of everyday life in medieval Europe. And they will propose the new possibility that neither Harold nor William were the true intended king…

Bestselling Author and Public Historian

David Musgrove is content director of Britain’s leading history magazine, HistoryExtra magazine, and its sister website and podcast. He is also the author of the bestselling 100 Places That Made Britain.  

Lead curator of the Bayeux Tapestry Exhibition, British Museum

Michael Lewis is Curator of the Bayeux Tapestry Exhibition at the British Museum and Visiting Professor at the universities of Exeter, Helsinki and Reading. He is an expert on the Bayeux Tapestry, writing many books and articles, and also a member of the Bayeux Museum's Bayeux Tapestry scientific committee since 2013. He is the Honorary Secretary of the Society for Medieval Archaeology.