Famous tree shows new signs of life

New leaves have been spotted at the stump of the historic Sycamore Gap tree

The Sycamore Gap tree is arguably the most famous in the UK, and many people were very angry when it was illegally cut down last year.

But there might now be hope that it will live on.

Eight new shoots have been spotted growing from the stump - they each have between one and six small leaves, and measure between two and four centimetres in height.

People have been asked not to touch the shoots while experts protect them and help them grow.

The small leaves mean the tree may regrow

Northumberland national park ranger Gary Pickles found the new growth while on a normal patrol of the area.

"I've done this walk several times over the last year, but this time it was different," he said.

"There was something new, the trunk was showing signs of regeneration."

Gary Pickles works for Northumberland National Park, which looks after the area where the tree stood

Mr Pickles was also the first person on the scene after the tree had been felled (which means cut down) with a chainsaw in the night, and said when he arrived he was sure it would never grow again.

So when he found these new shoots, he said he was "amazed and delighted that it may have a future after all and is making a go of it."

The Sycamore Gap tree was one of the most recognisable in the UK

The area of Hadrian's Wall where the tree stood is also looked after by the National Trust, an organisation which protects areas of natural or historical importance in the UK.

They've asked the public not to touch the new shoots.

Experts will be looking closer at the shoots, but the public have been asked not to touch them

Andrew Poad, general manager for the National Trust at Hadrian's Wall, said: "Our aim is to leave all eight shoots to grow for a few years to see how they develop."

The next few weeks and months are "vitally important for the success of these shoots forming into the reinvigorated tree", he said.

Two men are due to appear in court having been accused of cutting the tree down. They both deny the charges.

What was the Sycamore Gap tree and why was it so famous?

The tree was sometimes called Robin Hood's tree, after appearing in a Robin Hood film

People would come from all over the world to visit the famous tree.

This may have had something to do with its location - for around 300 years, the huge Sycamore Gap tree stood along Hadrian's wall, in the north of England.

It grew in a big dip in the wall, so looked very striking.

It won Woodland Trust's Tree of the Year in 2016, and has featured in several films, including the 1991 version of Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves.

What is Hadrian's Wall?

It took around 15,000 men around six years to build the wall

Hadrian's Wall is a really important historical landmark in the UK.

Built in 122 AD, it was put up by the Romans, as a border for what was called Britannica back then.

A large amount of what was beyond the wall was what we now call Scotland, back then it was a selection of different places the Romans called Caledonia.

The wall gets its name from the emperor who ordered it to be built - Hadrian.