A Blue Peter millennium time capsule has been accidentally dug up by construction workers 33 years early.

The capsule was planted under the Millennium Dome – now the O2 Arena – in 1998 by the BBC show’s then-presenters Katy Hill and Richard Bacon, with the intention that it would be unearthed in 2050, providing a glimpse into an earlier time.

Instead, workers stumbled across it on Wednesday, while excavating land at the site in Greenwich, south-east London, for a retail development.

Its contents were determined after a competition invited Blue Peter viewers to submit suggestions.

Among the items that made the cut were cultural relics such as a Roald Dahl book, a Spice Girls CD, a Tamagotchi toy, Tellytubby dolls and a France 1998 World Cup football.

But there were also items of greater historic significance such as a picture of a dove to symbolise peace in Northern Ireland. A video of a child’s walk to school, a grandfather’s letter about what had changed during his lifetime and the obligatory Blue Peter badge were also enclosed.

The capsule was damaged when it was dug up but the contents are intact and will be reburied, possibly with more items added.

#TBT to the #BluePeter Time Capsule I buried at @TheO2 w @richardpbacon for 2050 - except builders JUST dug it up! 😂 pic.twitter.com/VYY86NxfNA — Katy Hill (@KatyHillTV) February 2, 2017

A BBC spokeswoman said: “We are looking forward to sharing these memories with viewers and making new ones as we rebury the capsule until 2050.”

The O2 said its contractors had been searching for the precise location of the capsule since starting work last year.

A spokesman said: “Sadly it was accidentally damaged during excavations. The capsule and its contents are safely stored in our office and we’ve let the team at Blue Peter know.

“We’re going to work with them to either repair or replace the capsule and bury it again for the future.”

The time capsule is the third to be buried by the Blue Peter team. The first, including a Blue Peter annual and a set of decimal coins, was buried in 1971 by then-presenters Valerie Singleton, John Noakes and Peter Purves. It was dug up, along with another planted in 1984, in 2000.