Note the machines in the ceiling which operate the puppets. According to Wikipedia: "The business was formed in 1778 by Messrs Flint and Clark who began trading at 44 Wigmore Street in London as a drapers' store under the name Flint & Clark. In 1813 William Debenham was made a partner so the name was changed to Clark and Debenham. In 1818 the Company opened a second store in Cheltenham and in 1851 Clement Freebody became a partner so the name was changed again, this time to Debenham & Freebody. The business was incorporated as Debenhams Limited in 1905. The modern Debenhams group grew from the acquisition of department stores in towns and cities throughout the UK, under the leadership of its Chairman, Ernest Debenham. The first of these purchases, Marshall & Snelgrove at Oxford Street in London, was acquired in 1919. Later purchases included Harvey Nichols in London's Knightsbridge in 1920. Most stores acquired retained their former identities until a unified corporate image was rolled out across the stores. The Company was first listed on the London Stock Exchange in 1928. In 1976 the Company acquired Browns of Chester - the only store that has retained its own identity. In 1985 the Company was acquired by the Burton group. Debenhams was demerged in 1998 and was once again listed as a separate Company on the London Stock Exchange. It expanded under the leadership of Belinda Earl who was appointed CEO in 2000. The Company was acquired again in late 2003 this time by a private consortium comprising CVC Capital Partners, Texas Pacific Group, Merrill Lynch Global Private Equity and management. The company returned to a listing on the London Stock Exchange in 2006. In 2006 the Company went on to buy 9 of the 11 Roches Stores department stores in Ireland. As of July 2008, the company had 147 stores (including 10 'Desire by Debenhams' stores) covering 10.373 million square feet of retail space across the United Kingdom and Ireland.[7] It also has 40 franchise stores operating in other countries. The Company has introduced external branding into its menswear and ladieswear lines: these 'Designers at Debenhams' include Jasper Conran, John Richmond and John Rocha. It Company also sells goods under a number of brand names that it owns in its own right. In 2008 the Company was voted best UK department store by GMTV" And Oxford Street, according to Wikipedia: "The street follows the route of a Roman road, the via Trinobantina, which linked Hampshire with Colchester and became one of the major routes in and out of the city. Between the 12th century and 1782 it was variously known as Tyburn Road (after the River Tyburn that ran just to the south of it, and now flows underneath it), Uxbridge Road, Worcester Road and Oxford Road. Note: Today the name Uxbridge Road still exists for the portion of the London—Oxford Road between Shepherds Bush and Uxbridge itself. It became notorious as the route taken by prisoners on their final journey from Newgate Prison to the gallows at Tyburn near Marble Arch. By about 1729, the road had become known as Oxford Street. In the late 18th century, many of the surrounding fields were purchased by the Earl of Oxford, and the area was developed. It became popular with entertainers including tiger-baiters and masquerades, and for entertainment buildings such as the Pantheon. During the 19th century, the area became known for its shops."

While out and about today doing a few errands i stopped in for lunch McDonald's in Plainville Ma. I had a Quarter Ponder with Cheese and of course some french fries. It was very tasty lunch. Info: The Quarter Pounder was invented by Al Bernardin, a franchise owner and former McDonald's Vice President of product development, in Fremont, California, in 1971. Bernardin had moved to Fremont in 1970 after purchasing two company-owned McDonald's restaurants. Bernardin began experimenting with new menu items for his McDonald's franchises. According to a 1991 interview, Bernardin noted that he "felt there was a void in our menu vis-a-vis the adult who wanted a higher ratio of meat to bun." In 1971, Bernardin introduced the first Quarter Pounders at his McDonald's in Fremont using the slogan, "Today Fremont, tomorrow the world." His Quarter Pounder became a success and was added to the national American menu in 1973. In early 2007 the meat in the United Kingdom changed to "Euro Meat", a new style patty which has a smaller diameter but larger height. The new patty is more like a "home-made" burger than the older ones. In November 2008, McDonald's Japan (which did not ordinarily offer the Quarter Pounder) converted two Tokyo restaurants into "Quarter Pounder" branded restaurants which only sold Quarter Pounder meals. These promotional branches closed on 27 November 2008 coinciding with the re-introduction of the Quarter Pounder at regular McDonald's branches throughout the Kanto (Tokyo) region from 28 November. The Quarter Pounder was launched at one McDonald's restaurant in the Kansai (Osaka) region on 23 December 2008. It was later reported that 15,000 customers had visited the restaurant on the first day, generating a record 10.02 million yen in sales for a single restaurant in one day. It was however also revealed that McDonald's had hired 1,000 "extras" to queue up on the first day. McDonald's Japan explained that the hirees were used for "product monitoring purposes".