The Bayeux Tapestry, which depicts the Battle of Hastings in 1066, has arrived at the British Museum. It goes on view on September 10th. Already there is a scramble for tickets to see the world-famous 70-metre-long tapestry, which has not been seen in England since its creation in the 11th century.

If you’re not lucky enough to get tickets to the British Museum, then come along to Wymondham Heritage Museum. Here you can view an imaginative and colourful locally-made tapestry. It may not be as big or as old as the Bayeux Tapestry, but it does evocatively depict conflict – and there won’t be a queue to get in.

In 1984, Julie Oatridge (then Julie Hunt) was a teacher at Robert Kett Middle School. She was inspired to make a Tapestry with her schoolchildren, aged 11-12, based on the Operation Overlord Embroidery on display at the Portsmouth D-Day Museum. The Overlord Embroidery is an 83-metre-long hand-stitched tapestry depicting the D-Day landings and the Battle of Normandy, and was itself inspired by the Bayeux Tapestry.

A friend went on Julie’s behalf to view the Overlord Embroidery and, with the help of a local seamstress, she designed her quilted World War Two tapestry banner.

Along with her young stitchers, she produced a banner consisting of 12 panels illustrating various aspects of the 1939-45 conflict. They include Evacuation, The Blitz, Aftermath of a Raid, Women at War, Dunkirk, Battle of Britain, Pearl Harbour, D-Day and VE Day.

The tapestry is around five metres in length and is displayed as a frieze in the corridor just off the museum’s reception. It complements the wartime display Echoes of Valour.

And in other news - some tables have been turned…

They were old, and some of them wobbled. But now the Bridewell Tearoom has been refurbished with a fresh set of tables. And it’s all thanks to Wymondham Garden Centre.

Tearoom manager Helen Munday said, “Quite a few of them were wobbly and when people lent on them drinks would get spilt. We tried to fix them, but nothing worked. So when the Garden Centre said they were going to have a refit, we asked if we could have some and they kindly donated them to us.”

So, now when you come to the museum for your cuppa and slice of homemade cake, you’re guaranteed a stable table.

The generosity of Wymondham Garden Centre in gifting the tables was reflected in the reaction to the museum's announcement of the acquisition on its Facebook page. The posts quickly amassed more than 500 likes, with many people commenting how good it was to see such community spirit.