Cows will pop up around the city

The cows are individually painted to designs by artists, celebrities and school children, and will go on display from June 2001.

The colourful beasts will then be auctioned to raise money for the charity ChildLine.

Frances Coulson, the chief executive of CowParade London, says it will be the capital's biggest outdoor art event.

The animals will be displayed in parks and tourists spots such as Trafalgar Square.

"They'll be anywhere you would expect not to see a cow."

Tourist trap

Previous CowParades have proved to be enormously successful - and some tourists are following the painted herds from city to city.

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In Chicago, tourism officials estimate the event boosted spending in the city by $100m to $200m.

CowParade raised about $2.5m for charity, with one bidder paying more than $100,000 for a cow decorated with the handprints of patients in a children's hospital.

The New York event helped raise more than $3.5m for charity, including $1.8m in an online auction.

Seen and herd

Mrs Coulson attributes the popularity of the event to the juxtaposition of whimsical exhibits in strait-laced corporate cities.

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"CowParade makes the city smile. People typically rush around with their heads down but when they catch sight of a cow they can't help but smile.

"It brings art to the people who wouldn't dream of going to the National Gallery."

Designers typically look to the host city for inspiration, which may lead to the rebirth of Cool Britannia.

"We might see red bus cows or black cab cows - in New York, they had a Cow Jones Cow on Wall Street."

But why cows, which have previously been the subject of Damian Hirst's shock art?

"Maybe it's the Swiss origins of the event - in Zurich, you can see real cows from the city streets.

"They are friendly looking animals, and a good size for a canvas."