Piccadilly
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Piccadilly is a major London street, running from Hyde Park Corner in the west to Piccadilly Circus in the east. The street is part of the A4 road, London's main western artery, and runs alongside a number of famous buildings and sites, including Green Park.
It is the location of Fortnum & Mason, the Royal Academy and The Ritz Hotel. Simpson, once amongst the nation's leading clothing stores, opened on Piccadilly in the 1930s. The store closed in 1999 and the site is now occupied by the booksellers Waterstones.
The Piccadilly Line of the London Underground takes its name from Piccadilly and part of the line travels under Piccadilly. Green Park, Hyde Park Corner and Piccadilly Circus tube stations all have entrances either on or near to Piccadilly.
The name arises from a tailor named Robert Baker, who owned a shop in The Strand in the late 16th century and early 17th century. He amassed a large fortune by making and selling picadils (stiff collars with scalloped edges and a broad laced or perforated border), that were then in fashion. With his great fortune he purchased a large tract of what was then open country to the west of London and in about 1612 he built a large house there. The mansion soon became known as Piccadilly Hall.
There was a British film made in 1929 called "Piccadilly".
References
- Robert Baker of Piccadilly Hall and His Heirs by F.H.W. Sheppard (ISBN 0902087185)
- An article from the International Herald Tribune about the closing of Simpsons, its history and place on Piccadilly (http://www.iht.com/IHT/TB/99/tb013099.html)no:Piccadilly