Campbell Park is the name of the central park for

Milton Keynes Milton Keynes ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in Buckinghamshire, England, about north-west of London. At the 2021 Census, the population of Milton Keynes urban area, its urban area was 264,349. The River Great Ouse forms t ...

(England) and an electoral ward of the

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

of Central Milton Keynes. (The nearby Campbell Park (civil parish) previously included the park but no longer does so. It did not change its name after the park district was transferred to CMK Town Council). The park is listed (grade 2) "due to its historic interest and innovative architectural design".

The Park

The park, part of Central Milton Keynes civil parish (rather than Campbell Park CP), takes up the larger part of the district. It was named in honour of the first chairman of Milton Keynes Development Corporation, Jock Campbell, Baron Campbell of Eskan. It is accessed from the main retail/service/entertainment district at the end of Midsummer Boulevard by a footbridge over the Marlborough Street (B4146, V8)

cutting Cutting is the separation or opening of a physical object, into two or more portions, through the application of an acutely directed force. Implements commonly used for wikt:cut, cutting are the knife and saw, or in medicine and science the sca ...

. From here, the park slopes downwards to the

Grand Union Canal The Grand Union Canal in England is part of the Canals of the United Kingdom, British canal system. It is the principal navigable waterway between London and the Midlands. Starting in London, one arm runs to Leicester and another to Birmi ...

. A junction between the Grand Union and a new Bedford & Milton Keynes Waterway is proposed for this area. The park is listed (grade 2) by

Historic England Historic England (officially the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England) is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. It is tasked with prot ...

, and had previously attracted praise in the

Pevsner Architectural Guides The ''Pevsner Architectural Guides'' are four series of guide books to the architecture of the British Isles. ''The Buildings of England'' series was begun in 1945 by the art historian Sir Nikolaus Pevsner, with its forty-six original volumes pu ...

Milton Keynes Rose

The Rose, at the west end of the park and nearest to the MK's central business district, "is a public space designed for commemoration, celebration and contemplation". As well as a central

Cenotaph A cenotaph is an empty grave, tomb or a monument erected in honor of a person or group of people whose remains are elsewhere or have been lost. It can also be the initial tomb for a person who has since been reinterred elsewhere. Although t ...

, the installation includes markers for a wide variety of historical events. When

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

died in September 2022, the MK Rose was used by locals as a place to lay floral tributes.

Belvedere and the ''Light Pyramid''

Leading east from the ''Rose'', the Belvedere is level path leading to the ''Light Pyramid'', a sculptural

beacon A beacon is an intentionally conspicuous device designed to attract attention to a specific location. A common example is the lighthouse, which draws attention to a fixed point that can be used to navigate around obstacles or into port. More mode ...

designed by Liliane Lijn. (It is not a "temple to the sun".) The ground on either side falls away so that most of the path is on an increasingly elevated embankment.

Events plateau and amphitheatre

These spaces are used for community events and biennially for '' IF: Milton Keynes'', the Milton Keynes International Festival. This area is also known for hosting Milton Keynes-based events such as India Day and the African Diaspora Foundation Festival. The amphitheatre has also hosted concerts featuring acts such as Steps,

Paloma Faith Paloma Faith Blomfield (born 21 July 1981) is an English singer, songwriter, and actress. After signing with Epic Records in 2008, Faith released her debut album, '' Do You Want the Truth or Something Beautiful?'' (2009), which produced the UK ...

, and

Will Young William Robert Young (born 20 January 1979) is an English singer, songwriter and actor. He came to prominence after winning the 2002 inaugural series of the ITV talent contest '' Pop Idol'', making him the first winner of the worldwide '' Ido ...

Cricket ground

Campbell Park Cricket Ground and its

pavilion In architecture, ''pavilion'' has several meanings; * It may be a subsidiary building that is either positioned separately or as an attachment to a main building. Often it is associated with pleasure. In palaces and traditional mansions of Asia ...

lie at the east end of the park, near the Grand Union Canal.

Parks Trust headquarters

The Milton Keynes Parks Trust has its headquarters building at the eastern end of the park, near the cricket ground.

References

{{reflist

External links

Campbell Park
by The Parks Trust (includes link to highlights video) Parks and open spaces in the Borough of Milton Keynes