Blind man sues the British Museum over the Bayeux Tapestry: no audio-described tours

A blind man from south London has begun legal action against the British Museum after the institution does not offer audio-described tours for the eagerly awaited Bayeux Tapestry exhibition. Dr Yusuf Ali Osman, registered blind and living in Croydon, argues that he is denied an equal opportunity with sighted visitors to experience the nearly 1,000-year-old tapestry that depicts William I’s conquest of England in 1066, as Reuters reports.

Osman had contacted the museum as early as July 2026 to ask about audio-described tours, but the institution replied that it would not offer them. The reason given was that the tapestry’s light-exposure limits restrict visitor numbers, so the museum is prioritising self-guided visits.

On September 24, the law firm Leigh Day sent the museum a pre-action protocol letter — the formal step before a lawsuit — on Osman’s behalf. Through lawyer Kate Egerton, he is seeking compensation and a court order that would force the museum to change its policies, including disability-awareness training. “I want to be able to visit the Bayeux Tapestry and experience it for myself… It is disappointing that blind visitors are not offered an equal way to experience it,” Osman said. “Our client is seeking the same opportunity as sighted visitors to experience this exhibition,” Egerton added.

The British Museum responded that it is “committed to making the exhibition as accessible as possible”: it offers a tactile map, dedicated tours — including in-person audio-described tours — is exploring an audio-described option in the exhibition app guide as well, and a large-print guide has been added to the exhibition website.

The 70-metre-long tapestry is on display at the British Museum — on loan from France — until July 2027, under strict conservation controls: low light and only 40 minutes of viewing time per visitor from a raised platform. The first batch of tickets sold out completely and generated almost £2.5 million.