History buffs scrambled for tickets to the British Museum's 'very exciting' exhibition of the Bayeux Tapestry today with nearly 60,000 people in the online queue.Visitors desperate to view the tapestry later this year complained of hours-long waits as they flooded the London museum's website with exceptional demand.One tweeted that 'by the time I get to front the f***ing thing will be back in France' while another claimed the webpage crashed when it was finally their turn.A third joked that they 'better be allowed to take home a slice of the tapestry in a party bag after all this' while a fourth wrote: 'Come on people, hurry up!'Around 7.5million people are expected to view the 230ft-long embroidered cloth as it returns to UK soil for the first time since being made almost 1,000 years ago.Tickets to see the tapestry went on general sale at 10am today for entry between September and December, having first been made available to members on June 17.Museum officials have confirmed two further ticket releases will be made in October and January for access between January to March, and April to July 2027.Ticket prices range from £25 to £33 and the tapestry will be laid flat for the first time in almost 200 years amid fears over possible damage if hung from a display rail. People look at the Bayeux Tapestry at the Bayeux Tapestry Museum in Normandy, France Workers prepare to pack the Bayeux Tapestry in France for transfer to the British Museum The world-famous Bayeux Tapestry depicts the 1066 Norman invasion and Battle of Hastings Nearly 60,000 people were in the British Museum's online queue for the Bayeux TapestryThe tapestry, which famously shows the Normans firing an arrow into King Harold's eye, is now being loaned to the UK for the first time in nearly a millennium.It depicts the 1066 Norman invasion and Battle of Hastings, which saw William the Conqueror take the English throne and become the first Norman king of England.While the exact origins of the tapestry are obscure, it is believed to have been the work of English embroiderers, but has been in France for the last 950 years.The tapestry had been on display at the Bayeux Tapestry Museum in Bayeux in the Normandy region of France since 1983 and it will return there once the UK event is finished.The precise arrangements of how it will be transported are being kept secret amid fears from heritage experts and artists that it could be damaged in transit.'The details are quite closely guarded, but it will travel through the [Channel Tunnel],' British Museum director Nicholas Cullinan told BBC Radio 4 today. 'It's coming by land, and it will be with us fairly soon. So it's very exciting.'The exhibition will see the tapestry shown in one continuous display in a specially made glass container, and visitors will be able to view its entire length from above and also look at it up close.'We believe it's the world's longest showcase,' Mr Cullinan said of the case, which was manufactured in Belgium.France confirmed that the museum could borrow the tapestry last July during President Emmanuel Macron's state visit to Britain as the guest of King Charles. (From left0 French Ambassador Helene Duchene, British Museum director Dr Nicholas Cullinan and British Museum chair of trustees George Osborne at London's Piccadilly Circus in February Workers prepare to pack the Bayeux Tapestry in France for transfer to the British Museum Tapestry Of Trees, a Bayeux Tapestry-inspired installation from garden designer Andy Sturgeon, is displayed outside the British Museum which will host the tapestry from SeptemberThe loan of such a cultural treasure is being billed as a sign of closer ties between France and Britain one decade after the discord caused by the 2016 Brexit vote.In return, French museums will host some British treasures, including the Sutton Hoo collection of helmets, shields and other metal artwork dating back to the 7th century in Anglo-Saxon England.The event is set to be one of the most popular events in the British Museum's history.George Osborne, chairman of trustees at the museum, described the tapestry in February as a 'defining piece of our nation's history and a truly once-in-a-lifetime experience', adding that its display will be an 'extraordinary moment for the country'.Polling carried out for the museum earlier this year revealed more than three-quarters (76 per cent) of the public believe that '1066 is an important part of British history and people should learn more about it'.Meanwhile, four out of five (82 per cent) were supportive of school trips and encouraging of visits to the museum to see the tapestry while it is in the UK.A note at the top of the British Museum's homepage today said: 'Tickets for the Bayeux Tapestry are now on sale, and we expect the website to be very busy.'If you would like to book for general admission or a different event we recommend trying again another day.'Demand for tickets during the member sale period last month also saw issues as people complained of the site crashing and allocated queue numbers not working properly.Many threatened to cancel their membership, which starts at £82, while others compared the chaos to the scramble to book festival or concert tickets.The British Museum later apologised, with an email to members expressing regret at the 'delays' to the service and that its technical teams were 'urgently working to resolve the issue, particularly around waiting rooms'.The museum has been contacted for comment today by the Daily Mail.