You can’t beat author Vivien Lovett’s breezy two-parter (concluded 23 Nov) on the history of Croydon’s much-loved department store for local nostalgia, hilarity, visual images, incredulity and a lesson in retail marketing. The North End store was founded in 1854 by William Kennard and renamed Debenham’s in 1973. A visit to Kennard’s became a day out – big, bold and brash, it brought in the crowds. And in mid-30s Croydon its Father Christmases brought the streets around to a standstill, especially the 43-stone one reckoned the largest in the world….