About The Longest Yarn
Le Fil Le Plus Long - The Longuest Yarn - a Loi 1901 non-profit association registered in France (RNA / Registration Number W504006937), registered office: 48 Route de la Croix Pan, Houesville, Carentan-Les-Marais, France.
The Longest Yarn UK is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) Number 1219987 registered with the Charity Commission in England & Wales.
The Longest Yarn® is the public name & exhibition brand of the Association and the CIO, & thelongestyarn.com is its official website.
The mission of The Longest Yarn® – A Thread Through History is to bring history to life, honour those who came before us, and create something of lasting value for the people and communities who help us tell their stories.
How it all began
Through knitting, crochet and remarkable community collaboration, we transform true historical events and individual experiences into powerful, accessible exhibitions. Our work allows visitors of every age and background to encounter history differently – not simply through dates and statistics, but through people, their lives, their courage, their sacrifices and the world in which they lived.
What began as a creative way of commemorating the 80th anniversary of D-Day has developed into something much greater. Our exhibitions have now been seen by hundreds of thousands of people in Britain, France and the United States, demonstrating the extraordinary ability of traditional craft to communicate history across generations and national boundaries.
But The Longest Yarn is no longer solely about the stories portrayed in our exhibitions. It is also about the people creating them.
Thousands of hours are freely given by knitters, crocheters, researchers, designers, volunteers and supporters. Within that community, we have witnessed something we never anticipated when the project began: people finding friendship, confidence, purpose and a genuine sense of belonging.
Our social impact
Women involved in The Longest Yarn have told us that being part of the project has improved their mental wellbeing. Some have rediscovered confidence in themselves and their abilities; others have found companionship at times when they felt isolated. People who initially believed that they had little to contribute have discovered that their skills matter and that something made by their own hands can become part of an exhibition admired by thousands.
The friendships created through the project have crossed counties, countries, generations and backgrounds. People who would otherwise never have met now work together, support one another and share an enormous sense of pride in what they have achieved. Those connections have become so remarkable that The Longest Yarn community has even produced a marriage and an engagement.
We believe this social impact is now every bit as important as the exhibitions themselves.
Our mission for the future is therefore twofold: to preserve and communicate history in an imaginative, engaging and deeply human way, while using creativity and volunteering to strengthen communities, reduce isolation and give people purpose, confidence and connection.
We will continue taking our exhibitions into cathedrals, museums, military establishments, schools and communities, making history accessible to people who might never consider visiting a traditional exhibition.
Our exhibitions
Our debut exhibition, The Longest Yarn D-Day, was created to mark the 80th anniversary of D-Day. This 80-metre, hand-knitted and crocheted 3D artwork captures the 80 days of the Battle of Normandy — from the storming of the beaches to the liberation of Paris. After touring the UK, Ireland and the United States, it returned to Normandy, where it was housed through the Summer of 2026 in the 12th-century church of Saint-Hilaire-Petitville (Carentan-les-Marais), followed by a further planned tour of Northern Ireland and England from Autumn 2026. It will return to Saint-Hilaire-Petitville in Spring 2027.
Our second major exhibition, The Longest Yarn 2: Britain at War, is an 80-panel study of British life during the Second World War — from the declaration of war in September 1939 to VE Day in May 1945. It is currently touring cathedrals, museums, town halls and historic venues across the UK through to the end of 2027, alongside our life-sized hand-crafted figures honouring real wartime heroes.
Living history — told by the people who made it
At many venues, the volunteers who created the panels attend in person to explain their process, share the history behind each scene, and answer visitors' questions. School groups are warmly welcomed, and children encounter history in a form they can touch and remember. The feedback we treasure most is about memory: veterans and older visitors reminiscing about their own wartime experiences, families recognising the stories of parents and grandparents, and generations discussing history together, stitch by stitch.
We continue to create
The Longest Yarn never stands still. Our volunteers have created an entire hand-knitted and crocheted garden at our home in Normandy, and we are currently making new panels for a smaller touring exhibition that will bring our unique blend of craft and history to venues and communities unable to host our 80-metre installations.
Our impact in numbers
Since our debut exhibition opened in Carentan in May 2024, The Longest Yarn has been seen by over 500,000 visitors across the UK, Ireland, France and the United States. Each of our two major exhibitions comprises 80 hand-crafted panels made by hundreds of volunteer crafters worldwide.
At its heart, The Longest Yarn is about people – those whose stories we preserve and those who ensure those stories continue to be told.
We bring the past to life while making a difference to lives today.
Every panel tells a true story. Every story honours a life. And every person who helps create it becomes part of our story too.
Our funding
As a self-funded non-profit association, we operate on free or donation-based admission.
Guidebook sales, auctions of volunteer-made items and public donations fund our exhibitions — and any surplus is donated to veteran and community charities, including our current project helping refurbish a canal boat for a homeless veteran.
Do please visit our online Shop.