‘Protected for another century’: experts lift 15-tonne foremast from HMS Victory

In latest stage of 42m restoration project, 30-strong team removed mast from Nelson's Battle of Trafalgar flagship

There is only one correct way to extricate a 15-tonne wrought iron mast from one of the world's most famous and beloved warships - very slowly, and with extreme care.

Which is precisely what a 30-strong team, led by shipwrights and riggers, did on Monday night into Tuesday morning, when they lifted the foremast from HMS Victory as part of a 42m conservation project.