The last time I was in Milton Keynes was Saturday 26th July, 1980. Back then it was a relatively new city, the dream of 1960s government planners. I’m not sure if they ever really considered it would or could be a holiday destination.
Quite frankly, even after our recent visit, the jury may be still out, and, to be fair, 24 hours in Buckinghamshire’s only city isn’t going to provide a definitive answer but there’s lots to like about Milton Keynes and the beautiful county of “Bucks” as it’s affectionately known locally.
Back in 1980 what I do recall of Milton Keynes was roundabouts, lots and lots of roundabouts, and estates of houses that all looked identical. I recall thinking how does anyone remember where they live? Clearly they did, and have met others, because the population has ballooned to a healthy 250,000 ‘ish’ depending on whose figures you read. Back in the ’70s, the area’s population was a touch over 50,000 and it’s estimated to reach 300,000 by 2025. Don’t let that put you off visiting though, they’re a pretty nice bunch in Milton Keynes.
On this visit, a mix of business and pleasure, we stayed at the Holiday Inn at 500 Saxon Gate (appropriately named because Milton Keynes is rich with Anglo-Saxon history – you may remember the £300,000 Milton Keynes hoard of Bronze age gold jewellery that made the news).
Now the reason for choosing Saxon Gate was a) because it’s close to the National Film & Sci-Fi Museum, and b) The Centre:mk, a large mall-like shopping complex a stone’s throw away (Jennifer enjoys the odd sci-fi movie but doesn’t get all geeky about the genre like me). With several hundred shops to browse Jennifer was in her element and I headed for the museum.
The museum features an extensive collection of props, costumes, art, photos, and footage from some of the biggest film and tv productions, with many artefacts being shown for the very first time to the public. Displays from Star Wars to Indiana Jones, James Bond to Ghostbusters, Harry Potter to Marvel, and over a hundred films are all on show. It has been criticised for being somewhat amateur in its displays. I think that’s a little unfair. It’s a private operation and I imagine the costs to run it are pretty eye-watering. Is it worth the admission fee? Absolutely. My only disappointment was the no-photography rule. Yes, you can take the odd selfie in certain areas, but I think they’re missing a trick. This is the Instagram age and it’s losing out on valuable free publicity.
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Vale Life magazine
Check out the feature by clicking here. You’ll see how it appeared in the magazine.
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After our respective explorations, we returned to the Holiday Inn. We hadn’t managed to book an Exec room in Milton Keynes but, being perfectly honest, the standard room was just as nice as the Oxford offering although the shower didn’t quite have the afterburner power of Oxford’s. The interior and atrium in Milton Keynes are quite impressive and the hotel has parking directly out front – very handy. Its location makes it perfect for exploring the city centre. The staff here were really lovely and special praise goes to Freda and Lilli at breakfast who went out of their way to be super helpful when we needed a hand. The cooked breakfast, by the way, is very good.
Pretty good breakfast at The Holiday Inn, Milton Keynes
I didn’t mention why I was in Milton Keynes back in 1980. Well, I was seventeen at the time and my good friend, Ian Gemmell, and I had purchased tickets to see The Police at what was called Rockatta de Bowl (a play on The Police’s iconic Regatta de Blanc album), a day long festival of great bands: Squeeze, UB40, Tom Robinson, Jim Skafish and Fashion, with The Police headlining in the evening. To this day, The Bowl regularly hosts concerts featuring the world’s biggest bands.
At the time of booking, I had not passed my motorcycle test, so I had to pass first time a few weeks before the concert – luckily I did, and we headed to Milton Keynes Bowl (nowadays it’s called the National Bowl) the day before.
Arriving in Milton Keynes on Friday 25th, and not sure where The Bowl was, we thought we’d scope it out just to get our bearings. That afternoon, we rode right in and parked next to the stage. No one stopped us. A very familiar sound filled the air. We walked ‘round and sat on the sun-bathed grass as Sting, Stewart Copeland and Andy Summers sound-checked some of the new songs from the Zenyatta Mondatta album. A mere handful of people had heard them performed; they were actually recording the album at the time. The album was released the following October to critical acclaim. One journalist described it as “the perfect pop album”.
The next day, the weather wasn’t so great, but we had a fantastic day anyway. The Police at Rockatta de Bowl 1980 is still one of my favourite concerts ever. And, because of that, Milton Keynes will always have a very special place in my heart.
Holiday Inn
500 Saxon Gate, West
Milton Keynes MK9 2HQ
03719 429057
Just Google Holiday Inn
Useful links
National Film & Sci-Fi Museum
The National Bowl
Living History of Milton Keynes
Really useful information on Saxon history
The Police at The Milton Keynes Bowl
I was there!
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