The two men who felled the iconic Sycamore Gap tree have each been jailed for four years and three months.

Adam Carruthers, 32, and Daniel Graham, 39, drove 30 miles through a storm from Cumbria to Northumberland on 27 September 2023 before cutting down the landmark in less than three minutes.

Prosecutors said their "moronic mission" caused more than £620,000 worth of damage to the tree and over £1,000 worth of damage to Hadrian's Wall, where it fell.

They took a wedge as a trophy, which has never been recovered, and seemed to revel in the media coverage, exchanging messages and voice notes about the story going "wild" and "viral".

Footage of the moment the tree was felled was played during the men's trial at Newcastle Crown Court, where they both denied but were found guilty of two counts of criminal damage.

The judge, Mrs Justice Lambert, told them: "You, Adam Carruthers were the person who felled the tree, while you, Daniel Graham, assisted and encouraged him by driving there and back and, not least, by filming the crime on your mobile phone."

The judge said she found the pair jointly culpable, adding that a "major factor" in their motivation was "sheer bravado", telling them she found that felling the tree in the middle of the night during a storm "gave you a sort of thrill".

"You revelled in the coverage, taking evidential pride in what you had done, knowing you were responsible for the crime everyone was talking about," she added.

During their trial, Graham and Carruthers, who were once close friends, gave no explanation for why they targeted the tree, and since their arrests, they have fallen out and have blamed each other.

Tree feller explains why he targeted landmark

But at their sentencing hearing, the court heard both men have now accepted they went on the mission to probation officers preparing pre-sentence reports.

Carruthers's barrister Andrew Gurney revealed his client's explanation as he said people always want to know why he carried out "this mindless act".

"Unfortunately, it's nothing more than drunken stupidity," he said. "He felled that tree and it is something he will regret for the rest of his life. There's no better explanation than that."

The court heard Carruthers claimed he had drunk a bottle of whisky after a tough day and "everything was a blur".

But the judge said felling the tree had "demonstrated skill" and was not the act of "someone significantly impaired by drink".

Christopher Knox, defending Graham, said there was "no question of intoxication" in his client's case.

The court heard Graham said his "good nature had been exploited" and it was Carruthers's "dream" and "his show" which he "just went along with".

He claimed he was "shocked" when he went through with it, describing Carruthers as a "fantasist" who had previously damaged property to mark significant personal events or milestones.

But the judge said his filming of the incident and later revelling in the coverage was "not the behaviour of someone shocked or horrified by what had happened".

Prosecutor Richard Wright KC said Graham's explanation that it was "only when the blade made contact with the tree he realised it was serious" was "fanciful".

"The court can be sure they were sober, prepared and planned to do exactly what they did," he added.

Graham has a previous caution for theft after he cut up a "large quantity of logs using a chainsaw", the court heard.

He also has convictions for violence, including battery and public order offences, which were said to be "relationship-based", while father-of-two Carruthers has no previous cautions or convictions.

Mr Knox said Graham's caravan was targeted in an attack, with windows smashed, and he has received hate mail since the incident.

'A totemic symbol'

The tree, which had stood for more than 100 years in a dip in the landscape, held a place in popular culture and was featured in the 1991 Kevin Costner film Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves.

It also formed part of people's personal lives, as the scene of wedding proposals, ashes being scattered and countless photographs.

A 6ft section of the trunk is now on public display at The Sill: National Landscape Discovery Centre, around two miles from where it once stood, while 49 saplings taken from the tree have been conserved by the National Trust.

In a victim impact statement read at their sentencing hearing, National Trust general manager Andrew Poad, said the "iconic tree can never be replaced" but its stump is "showing signs of life".

"While the National Trust has cared for it on behalf of the nation, it belonged to the people," he wrote.

"It was a totemic symbol for many; a destination to visit whilst walking Hadrian's Wall, a place to make memories, take photos in all seasons; but it was also a place of sanctuary - a calming, reflective space that people came to year after year.

"While what was lost cannot be replaced, the stump is showing signs of life, with new shoots emerging at the base - as the decades progress, there is hope that some may grow and establish."

He added: "The overwhelming sense of loss and confusion was felt across the world.

"When it became clear that this was a malicious and deliberate act, the question was why anyone would do this to such a beautiful tree in such a special place, it was beyond comprehension."

'Old school policing'

Detective Inspector Calum Meikle told Sky News that police had to revert to "old school policing" to solve the case.

He said the breakthrough came with a tip-off identifying Graham and Carruthers as being involved, which was confirmed when officers found the felling video.

"The impact that it has had is so far-reaching," he said.

"Living in the local area, having conversations with people… it's sad, very sad that generations to come won't see what we have all seen. It's something that will never be possible to recreate."

(c) Sky News 2025: Two men who felled Sycamore Gap tree jailed for four years and three months each