Everyone can find Big Ben. Far fewer people have stood in front of a memorial to a dead parrot. Tucked into the grounds of Devonport House in Greenwich, this odd little monument is believed to be a tribute to Monty Python's legendary Dead Parrot sketch — though with one wrinkle. The sculpture is a sulphur-crested cockatoo, not the fictitious Norwegian Blue from the 1969 sketch. Artist Jon Reardon installed it in 2009, and it briefly went walkabout in 2012, when it was removed for the London Olympics before returning to its patch of Greenwich.

The parrot is just one stop on a tour of London's overlooked curiosities put together by YouTuber JackSucksAtLife, who wanders the city pointing out landmarks most visitors — and plenty of locals — walk straight past. Among the highlights are the Cornhill Devils, grotesque figures lurking on a City of London building with a genuinely satisfying backstory about an architect getting revenge on a meddling vicar. Jack traces how they ended up snarling down at the street below.

Then there are the stretcher railings. After the Second World War, London had thousands of stretchers that had been stockpiled for air raid casualties. Rather than scrap them all, the city repurposed many as railings outside housing estates — and you can still spot them today, complete with the holes that once held handles. Once you know what they are, you'll see them everywhere.

Quieter still is the grave of an unknown Roman girl. Her remains were discovered during building work in the City and are now marked with a memorial, an accidental pause in a financial district that otherwise races forward. It's a strangely moving pocket of ancient London sitting beneath glass towers.

What makes all of this appealing is that it costs nothing and requires no tickets. These landmarks are scattered across places you might already be heading — Greenwich for the parrot, the City for the devils and the Roman grave — so they slot easily into a normal day of sightseeing. They also reward walking, which is honestly the best way to see London anyway. If you've done the Tower and the Eye before, this is the second-visit itinerary: smaller crowds, stranger stories, and the kind of photos nobody else on your feed will have.

For a taster before you go, Jack's video tour covers the lot in an entertaining hour or so of armchair sightseeing. For everyone else, just keep your eyes up — London's oddest monuments aren't hidden, exactly. They're just easy to miss when you're staring at your phone.

Story via Kuriositas.