Blind Man Sues British Museum Over Lack of Audio-Described Tours for Bayeux Tapestry
A man who is registered blind has taken legal action against the British Museum over the accessibility of its Bayeux Tapestry exhibition, alleging that the London institution breached the Equality Act by declining to offer live audio-described tours of the blockbuster display.
Dr Yusuf Ali Osman, from Croydon in south London, contacted the museum in July 2026 to ask whether live audio-described tours would be provided for the exhibition of the nearly 1,000-year-old embroidery. According to his lawyers at the firm Leigh Day, the museum confirmed that audio-described tours would not form part of its current programme, explaining that restrictions on the number of hours the tapestry can be exposed to light each week limit how many visitors can enter the gallery and that it was therefore prioritising self-guided visits. A pre-action protocol letter was sent to the museum on 24 September 2026.
Osman is seeking damages, a declaration that he has been discriminated against, and an order requiring the museum to amend its policies and ensure relevant staff receive disability awareness training. In a statement released on 30 September, he said: “I want to be able to visit the Bayeux Tapestry and experience it for myself. I understand that there are important restrictions around how the tapestry is displayed, but it is disappointing to find that blind visitors are not being offered an audio described way of experiencing it.”
His solicitor, Kate Egerton, a discrimination specialist at Leigh Day, said the Equality Act places obligations on service providers to anticipate the needs of disabled people and take reasonable steps to avoid substantial disadvantage, adding that “our client is asking for the same opportunity as sighted visitors to experience this exhibition.”
The British Museum has since said it will provide an in-person audio-described tour of the tapestry during the exhibition run and is exploring adding a separate audio-described tour to the exhibition’s app-based audio guide. A sensory map to help visitors prepare for their visit and dedicated tours are also planned. A museum spokesperson said the institution is “committed to making the Bayeux Tapestry exhibition as accessible as possible” and has worked with specialist access consultants to inform the exhibition experience, with further accessibility offers being explored.
The 70-metre-long tapestry, which depicts the Norman conquest of England in 1066, is on display from September 2026 until July 2027 in a historic loan from France. Ticket-holders are given 40 minutes to view it from an elevated platform, and the first batch of tickets sold out quickly, generating nearly £2.5 million ($3.32 million). The case adds to growing scrutiny of how major cultural institutions meet their accessibility duties for disabled visitors.