Both men would be blaming each other or other people, Mr Wright says.

He said despite initially talking about their "operation" and saying other people did not have the "minerals" to do what they had done, the pair now were "lacking in courage" to admit their actions.

"Their once close friendship appears to have unravelled, perhaps as the public revulsion at their behaviour became clear to them," Mr Wright told jurors.

The prosecution cannot prove who actually cut the tree down and who filmed it, Mr Wright says.

But, he adds, that does not matter.

"Any person who either wielded the chainsaw or intentionally assisted or encouraged the other person to do so is just as guilty as a matter of law, because they were in it together from first to last."

Daniel Graham and Adam Carruthers were first arrested on 31 October 2023, just over a month after the tree was felled, the court hears.

In their interviews, both denied they were responsible for felling the tree, Mr Wright says.

Mr Graham accepted the Range Rover was his but said it was open to anyone else to use, while the phone was his and other people could use it while he was at work.

He also claimed he was "not trained to fell large trees" but was able to explain to officers how he would use a wedge technique, Mr Wright says.

Mr Carruthers also denied knowing how to fell a tree and said he would "have a go if asked", Mr Wright says, despite a video in August 2023 showing the two men chopping down a tree.

In the days after the felling, Mr Graham was searching for Youtube videos about the tree.

He also made searches for the name of another man who, at an early stage in the investigation, had been arrested.

Mr Wright says the man and a 16-year-old boy were initially arrested by police and Mr Graham was obviously taking an interest in the investigation.

The jury has now been played voice notes between the defendants.

In one, Mr Carruthers talked about it appearing on BBC, ITV and Sky news and saying: "I think it's going to go wild."

Mr Graham's replied it has "gone viral" and was "worldwide".

Mr Wright says: "This is not just two interested members of the public discussing the news.

"This is more than mere discussion, this is excitement at the fact it's gone worldwide it's gone viral, its being talked about all over the world.

"There is no sadness here or remorse."

Mr Graham also took multiple screenshots of the media reporting, which Mr Wright says was "another trophy" and the accused "gathering news of their infamy and saving it".

The following morning, people across the world were talking about what had happened, Mr Wright says.

He says there was "nothing unusual" about the public response but "what is unusual is Graham and Carruthers’s behaviour after the news broke".

The two had a five minute phone call, then, when Mr Carruthers was sending him posts and clippings about the "outpouring of upset", Mr Graham replied: "Here we go".

Mr Wright says the pair were "commenting but not feeling bad," adding they were "loving it" and "revelling in it", these being the responses of two men who thought it was "clever funny or big".

They also shared comments about how well the cut had been carried out.

Prosecutor Richard Wright KC is now giving jurors a quick summary of what has been heard so far.

The key points include:

• The two accused were good friends with expertise and experience in cutting down trees
• Data shows Mr Graham's phone and car travelling to and from Sycamore Gap
• A video of the felling was filmed on Mr Graham's phone
• That video was sent to Mr Carruthers before anyone else in the world knew what had happened
• A wedge of wood taken from the tree was photographed in the boot of Mr Graham's car

The accused took a wedge cut out of the tree as a trophy, Mr Wright says.

He says there is "no doubt about it" that a picture at 02:01 of a piece of wood in his car was taken at his home before anyone else in the world knew what had happened to the tree.

Mr Wright says an expert examined the images and concluded there is "no doubt" the boot of the car was Mr Graham's Range Rover.

A forensic botanist concluded there was "very strong evidence" the piece of wood was the wedge from the Sycamore Gap tree, Mr Wright says.

At about 01:30 as they headed home, Adam Carruthers was sent a video from his girlfriend of his child being bottle-fed, to which he replied: "I've got a better video than that."

His partner responded "I bet", to which Mr Carruthers replied with a number of kisses and the message "you know the score", the court hears.

The video was then sent to his phone by Mr Graham's phone, the court hears, adding he now had his own record of this "heroic act he has just committed".

About 25 minutes after the film on the phone was recorded, the headlights of a car were captured leaving the area on the camera at the nearby Twice Brewed Inn, Mr Wright says.

He says the footage caught at 00:58 is the pair leaving in Mr Graham's Range Rover and heading back towards Carlisle.

The trial has now resumed with prosecutor Richard Wright KC still opening the case to jurors.

Before the short break, they were shown a two minute and 41 second-long video of what the prosecution say is the moment the tree was cut down.

Mr Wright says the footage was "created" on Mr Graham's mobile phone at 00:32 on 28 September, 37 minutes after the car was seen passing the Twice Brewed Inn.

He said its metadata reveals it was recorded at the exact coordinates of Sycamore Gap.

"In simple terms Graham's phone was right there and his phone filmed the tree being cut down," Mr Wright says.

He also says whoever filmed it was as responsible for the criminal act as the person wielding the chainsaw, adding: "They were in it together, and they were Mr Carruthers and Mr Graham."

A photo was also taken at 00:34 showing the outline of a felled tree, Mr Wright says.

Image source, PA Media

The trial is now taking a short break to allow jurors to stretch their legs.

This morning's session ended with the showing of the mobile phone footage which prosecutors say was the moment the tree was felled.

Richard Wright KC is part way through his opening to jurors, having started at about 10:30 BST.

He has told jurors it was a "moronic mission" with the tree, that stood for more than a century, being felled within minutes.

Mr Wright said the defendants had been good friends and were together that night, with data showing Mr Graham's phone and Range Rover travelling towards and away from Sycamore Gap.

A picture was taken of a chunk of wood in Mr Graham's boot which was almost certainly the wedge cut out of the tree that the pair had taken as a trophy, Mr Wright said, although he added it had never been found by police.

Afterwards, when news of the felling broke in the press and on social media, the men shared multiple posts and appeared to be "revelling" in.

Both Daniel Graham and Adam Carruthers deny two counts of criminal damage relating to the tree and the Roman wall.

Fiona Trott
Reporting from Newcastle Crown Court

Footage shown to the jury displays a large tree nestled in a dip on the landscape and you can hear the sound of it falling.

Defendant Daniel Graham watches closely.

Jurors have now been shown the footage filmed on Mr Graham's phone which prosecutor Mr Wright says is the moment the tree was cut down.

He says the two minute and 41 second-long video is "extremely dark" but the "unmistakeable" noise of a chainsaw can be heard followed by the sound of a tree falling.

Police experts have "enhanced" the video as much as possible but it has "not been interfered with", Mr Wright tells the jury.

"What you are going to see is the felling of the Sycamore Gap tree," Mr Wright says, before the video is played.

It is very grainy and unclear at the beginning but midway through the camera operator steps back or zooms out and the silhouette of a person using a chainsaw to cut the tree down is clearly visible.

It ends with an almighty crashing sound and the tree disappearing from view.

Footage recorded by CCTV cameras at the Twice Brewed Inn near Hadrian's Wall is also important, Mr Wright says.

At 23.55 on 27 September, the pub's camera captured a set of vehicle headlights travelling up and making a left turn towards the Steel Rigg car park, which was a 20 minute walk to the tree, Mr Wright says

It was too dark to make out the vehicle but when put together with the phone and ANPR data, Mr Wright says that was Mr Graham's Range Rover approaching the car park from where the two would set off on foot.

Mr Wright says jurors should be able to see the defendants "are in it together".

He says: "On this night at the very time this tree is going to be felled, Mr Carruthers is not at home, he is out and about.

"He not not ringing his pal Mr Graham any more and there is Mr Graham's Range Rover leaving his home address travelling towards Sycamore Gap just at the time the tree is going to be cut down and then heading back again.

"And Mr Graham's phone is doing the same thing.

"They are in it together."

Mr Graham's Range Rover was also captured on automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras heading towards Sycamore Gap that night, the court hears.

It was last seen at Brampton at 23:37 before being caught on the same camera heading back towards Carlisle at 01:18.

Mr Wright says it is anticipated the defence will claim someone else was driving Mr Graham's car, but the prosecution say the car's movements tally with those recorded from Mr Graham's mobile phone.

Fiona Trott
Reporting from Newcastle Crown Court

Prosecutor Richard Wright KC has now been addressing the jury for more than an hour.

In the dock, Daniel Graham is looking at Mr Wright and the judge as he follows proceedings.

Adam Carruthers has his head down.

Data from Mr Graham's phone shows it was moving towards Sycamore Gap on the night of 27 September, Mr Wright says.

So-called cell site analysis shows Mr Graham's phone moving along the A689 towards the tree at about 23:30, with the final ping coming at 23:41 at Brampton, about 11 miles (18km) west of Sycamore Gap.

"Mr Graham's telephone was deliberately disconnected from the network at that time, " Mr Wright says, adding the prosecution say Mr Graham was the man in possession of the phone.

The phone reconnected to the network about two hours later at 01:28, the court hears.

Data from the men's phones shows they were together that night, the court hears.

The last phone contact between the two men was a one minute and 18 second phone call at 22:23 on 27 September, with the lack of further messages and calls strongly suggesting the pair were then together for the rest of the night, Mr Wright says.

"You don't need to phone somebody who are you with," the prosecutor says.

Messages between Mr Carruthers and his partner showed he was not at home that night, the court hears.