There is a dark force in the middle of Soho. Like an abyss, it swallows up light and repels hope. It corrupts all those who grow close, trapping them in its embrace. Its tiers wind in on themselves like an Escher artwork. At its hollow centre, a DayGlo spiral staircase twists upwards to look out across the wasteland that is Leicester Square. Dante thought hell had nine circles, but there is a place more terrifying than anything he imagined in the Divine Comedy, and it has four floors. I am talking, of course, about M&Mâs World.
M&Mâs World â a Minionified shop that sits on the corner of Leicester Square, curling back into Chinatown â has cemented itself as the empty heart of central London in its 13 years of existence. It appeared here in June 2011, taking over a site formerly occupied by the Swiss Centre. It is to this day the worldâs largest candy store, clocking in at an impressive 35,000 square feet of pure, unadulterated M&Mâs content. Itâs one of a series of bizarre âuniverseâ themed shopping locations imagined by the world-building execs at Mars, Incorporated â the first opened on the Las Vegas strip in 1997, followed by outposts in Florida, New York, Nevada, Shanghai, Minnesota and Berlin.
Created as part of Westminster City Councilâs regeneration plan for the local area â conceived amid the rose-tinted haze of the London 2012 Olympics dream â M&Mâs World was meant to make Leicester Square a âworld-class destinationâ, akin to the remodelling of Times Square in New York that took it from a dangerous, forgotten and crime-heavy area in the 1980s to the mecca of consumerism and tourism that it is today.
ãã®èšäºã¯ The Independent ã® September 22, 2024 çã«æ²èŒãããŠããŸãã
7 æ¥éã® Magzter GOLD ç¡æãã©ã€ã¢ã«ãéå§ããŠãäœåãã®å³éžããããã¬ãã¢ã ã¹ããŒãªãŒã9,000 以äžã®éèªãæ°èã«ã¢ã¯ã»ã¹ããŠãã ããã
ãã§ã«è³Œèªè ã§ã ?  ãµã€ã³ã€ã³
ãã®èšäºã¯ The Independent ã® September 22, 2024 çã«æ²èŒãããŠããŸãã
7 æ¥éã® Magzter GOLD ç¡æãã©ã€ã¢ã«ãéå§ããŠãäœåãã®å³éžããããã¬ãã¢ã ã¹ããŒãªãŒã9,000 以äžã®éèªãæ°èã«ã¢ã¯ã»ã¹ããŠãã ããã
ãã§ã«è³Œèªè ã§ã? ãµã€ã³ã€ã³
What can stop Verstappen winning fifth straight title?
It is rare that we learn fresh pieces of detail about drivers on the Formula One grid.
Mo' money, mo' goals - why Salah is worth the gamble
As clear and emphatic as Mohamed Salahâs words on Sunday were, something was still left unsaid.
Guardiola: 'It will be a bad season by our standards'
But after five losses in a row, Man City's manager is defiant
West Ham hit Newcastle on counter to ease pressure
Tomas Soucek and Aaron Wan-Bissaka combined to burst Newcastleâs bubble as West Ham handed under-pressure boss Julen Lopetegui breathing space with a priceless Premier League away win.
Flood-proofing homes now will prevent future misery
One thing most people would agree on: Britain urgently needs new homes.
Chancellor has gone from cosying up to confrontation
Rachel Reeves urgently needs a new script â and some pizzazz.
CBI boss warns Budget will mean fewer jobs are created
Half of UK companies will cut jobs and two-thirds will recruit fewer staff, according to the boss of the UK's top business lobby group.
Man who drugged wife in mass rape case should serve 20 years, say prosecutors
French prosecutors have sought a 20-year prison term for Dominique Pelicot, accusing him of facilitating the mass rape of his wife Gisele Pelicot by dozens of men, drugging her unconscious, and sharing pictures and videos of her sexual assault.
Thousands arrested at Khan protests as Pakistan capital put under police lockdown
Pakistani authorities arrested more than 4,000 supporters of Imran Khan, including five parliamentarians, ahead of a rally demanding the release of the former prime minister from prison, where he has been held for over a year.
One dead after DHL cargo plane crashes in Lithuania
A DHL cargo plane has crashed into a house near the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius, killing at least one of four people on board.