Builders dig up Blue Peter time capsule 33 years early and smash it open

Buried: The time capsule was placed under the Millennium Dome, now the O2 arena, in 1998 by Blue Peter presenters Richard Bacon and Katy Hill
Nils Jorgensen/Rex
Jamie Bullen2 February 2017

Builders accidentally unearthed a Blue Peter time capsule under the O2 Arena 33 years earlier than planned before smashing it with hammers and shovels.

Construction workers dug up the Millennium Time capsule which was packed with BBC viewers’ mementos on Tuesday.

It was buried underground in 1998 at the then Millennium Dome by Blue Peter presenters Richard Bacon and Katy Hill.

Contents inside the capsule, which include a Spice Girls CD, Tellytubby dolls and a Tamagotchi, were meant to be opened in 2050.

But now they have been moved to an office after the container was damaged during excavation works amid reports workers attacked it believing it held valuables.

A source told the Sun: “Nobody realised it was the Blue Peter capsule.

"The boys thought they’d struck gold. They were going at it with anything they could find — hammers, shovels, the lot.

“At one point a bloke in a forklift squished it with the machine’s teeth.”

A spokesman for the O2 Arena confirmed the capsule was damaged but said it would be repaired and buried again.

He said: “The team at the O2 and our contractors ISG have been searching for the Blue Peter Time Capsule since we started construction work in 2016.

"We found it yesterday but sadly it was accidently damaged during excavations. The capsule and its contents are safely stored in our office and we've let the team at Blue Peter know.

"We're going to work with them to either repair or replace the capsule and bury it again for the future."

A BBC spokeswoman said: “Although a little earlier than anticipated, we’re looking forward to sharing these memories with our viewers and making new ones as we return the capsule to the earth so that it can be reopened in 2050 as originally planned.”

Also included inside the capsule was a Roald Dahl book, photographs of Princess Diana, coins, stamps and a France 98 football.

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