Giant creature's bones on display

The exhibit will be the centrepiece of a redeveloped museum

A 70 million-year-old skeleton is going on display for the first time after four years of restoration work.

It is the first plesiosaur of its type to be found anywhere in the world and is being studied by experts.

The 15ft-long reptile will go on show at the University of Hull's Scarborough campus on Wednesday.

The species could be named by scientists after Doncaster electrician Nigel Armstrong who discovered the skeleton near Filey in 2002.

"If they do name it after me, they will stick an 'i' on the end of my name to Latinise it - and it will become an Armstrongi," he said.

How a plesiosaur would have looked

Mr Armstrong came across a vertebra in a landslip and was able to follow a further trail of bones up the cliff face until he came to the main skeleton, making it an almost complete specimen.

He soon realised the significance of his find - described as a long-necked, fish-eating reptile - and alerted local museum staff.

Experts joined him at the site and the remains were excavated and taken away for detailed restoration.

It will eventually be the star exhibit when the redeveloped Rotunda Museum in Scarborough reopens in 2007.