Dippy dinosaur set to be 'flat packed' ahead of tour

Dippy is actually a copy of an American dinosaur specimen

The UK's most famous dinosaur is set to be "flat-packed" ahead of its nationwide tour.

Dippy the Diplodocus, a 70ft (21.3m) plaster-cast sauropod replica made up of 292 bones, is set to leave the Natural History Museum later this year.

On Thursday, a six person team will start to dismantle Dippy, starting with the tail. It is expected to take three-and-a-half weeks.

He is being moved as the museum is having a big front-of-house makeover.

Dippy's coveted spot is being taken by the real skeleton of an 83ft (25.2m) female blue whale, weighing 4.5 tonnes.

She will take up position in a diving pose as she is suspended from the ceiling of the hall.

Dippy was first installed at the museum in 1905

The near-4.5-tonne whale specimen is more than 100 years old, and - unlike Dippy - she is not a cast.

Dippy will be on show for the final time at the central London museum on Wednesday.

Then, parts of him will be cleaned and repaired ahead of the two-year tour.

About 90 million people are estimated to have seen Dippy

Kat Nilsson, head of national public programmes at the museum, said: "We are going to turn him, essentially, into flatpack Dippy so that he can be put together - probably in four days by the end of it, maybe even less."

Lorraine Cornish, head of conservation at the museum, said she expected him to fit into 12 crates.

She said: "We are drawing out a map so we can locate each part of that skeleton - we have a labelling system because some of the vertebrae look very similar.

"Once you get them off you don't want to muddle them up, so we have developed a proper numbering system that works with dinosaur anatomy."

'Get out on a journey'

Ms Cornish, who joined the museum when Dippy moved into the entrance hall, said his departure was "an emotional time" and that staff "bond" and "feel protective" about the specimens.

"I have seen first hand the amount of pleasure Dippy has brought families and people coming into the museum, but I am really excited that Dippy can go out on tour around the UK," she said.

"He has been stuck in Hintze Hall since 1979 - it will be great for him to get out on a journey."

The blue whale will hang from the ceiling of the NHM's Hintze Hall in a diving pose

The tour will start early next year, with Dorset County Museum set to be the first stop.

He will also visit Birmingham Museum, Ulster Museum, Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum in Glasgow, Great North Museum in Newcastle, the National Assembly of Wales in Cardiff, Number One Riverside in Rochdale, and Norwich Cathedral.

When Dippy returns, he will still play a prominent role at the museum as he will be re-cast in bronze and be the first thing visitors see as they approach the institution from South Kensington tube station.