Concrete Cows

Milton Keynes has a reputation for being aggressively modern, so stumbling across a herd of life-sized concrete cattle grazing in the middle of town feels like finding a joke you're only half getting. These are the Concrete Cows - an art installation that's become oddly iconic for a place that didn't ask for quirky symbolism. Created in the 1970s, they've stayed put ever since, standing in a field like bovine monuments to the city's transformation from farmland to sprawl.

There's not much to it, honestly. You turn up, you see the cows, you take the photo everyone takes, you leave. Five minutes, tops. But that's rather the point - it's public art that doesn't demand anything of you, which is refreshing. The conversation starter is the actual attraction here. History buffs might appreciate what they represent about post-war British planning and the slightly absurd earnestness of 1970s public art. Kids will find them amusing for about as long as it takes to get one picture.

If you're based at Gullivers Campsite or Cosgrove Park nearby, it's worth the short drive for a novelty stop between proper attractions. Don't expect profound cultural experience. Go expecting to smile at something deliberately daft, and you'll leave satisfied. Free, obviously. Open whenever, really - it's just cows standing in a field.