Bayeux Tapestry embroidery found in school attic

A hand-stitched embroidery inspired by the Bayeux Tapestry has been discovered hidden in the attic of a village school.

The 23ft-long (7m) artwork was found covered in cobwebs at Uffington Church of England Primary School in Lincolnshire.

Thought to date from the 1960s or 1970s, nobody at the school knows exactly when it was made or who spent hours stitching its historical scenes.

Head teacher Andrew Evans said he "couldn't believe it" when it was uncovered.

Similar to the original, the school's tapestry also tells the story of the Norman conquest of England and the Battle of Hastings in 1066.

Like its medieval inspiration, the school's artwork also appears to be incomplete.

"There's a section at the end which seems to be missing, so we'll have to keep hunting," Evans said.

"It might be up in the ceiling somewhere, hidden away or in a box."

Evans said he believed the artwork would have taken quite some time to make.

"The level of detail that's been put into creating this, it's not something that's going to have been made over one or two weeks," he said.

Pupils at the school have been fascinated by the discovery.

Charlotte, 10, said her favourite part of the embroidery were the scenes depicting battle.

"I love all the violence in it," she said.

"It's quite cool looking at how they used to behave back then because right now we'd probably just like be settling it in court, which isn't very exciting."

She believes the school's version has something the original cannot match.

"I think this one's cooler because the school made it," she said.

George, seven, said his favourite scene showed King Harold II being struck in the eye by an arrow.

"I think it was a very brutal war," George said.

The embroidery has now been given to the village archive, where efforts are continuing to uncover its history.

Kate Genever, who runs the archive, said the artwork only came to light after somebody with links to the school remembered where it had been stored.

"I squawked and said, 'it's gorgeous'. It's a fantastic thing," Genever said.

"I love the colour of it. Of course, it's very different from the original but that's what makes it brilliant."

Evans added: "If you're not lucky enough to get tickets for the British Museum, then to be able to kind of come and see this in the village would be second best."

Listen to highlights from Lincolnshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North.

Download the BBC News app from the App Store for iPhone and iPad or Google Play for Android devices