Soon to visit Tokyo, if I wanted to purchase a sword over there as a gift, what is the current policy in UK?

Question:

I am visiting Tokyo at the end of May and was thinking about buying a sword as a gift as one of the stops on the visit will be a sword shop in Tokyo. I was wondering what the policy of that would be with regards to getting it back to the UK?
Also what is the current policy on the keeping of the sword/possession of the sword, would it need to be registered in some way or stored in a particular way?

Answer:

These swords have been illegal in the UK since April 2008. If you attempt to take one into the UK, or post it, it will be confiscated, you will have to pay the cost of having it destroyed and at the very least you will get a rather scary letter from HMCR advising you on your folly. A worst case scenario will have you prosecuted, fined and a obtaining criminal record.