Major fire at Carluccio's restaurant in Bicester Village

The Bicester Village branch of Italian restaurant chain Carluccio's has suffered a major fire.

The Oxfordshire Fire Service confirmed that emergency services had been called to the scene at the designer outlet mall after the fire is thought to have started at 8.30am today (1 April).

No one was hurt.

Seven fire engines and 35 firefighters worked to put out the blaze, which is now said to be under control, with crews "damping down" at the scene, and monitoring nearby buildings.

The cause of the fire is yet to be determined, but the Fire Service stated that it had reached the roof of the building, and may have started externally. Tiles reportedly fell from the roof during the incident.

Eyewitnesses at the scene told the BBC that the fire was burning strongly and that shoppers were evacuated, with the village formally shut at 8:45am.

Photo by @paul_jenner, Paul Jenner, producer/reporter for BBC OxfordCarluccio's has confirmed that the venue will remain closed until further notice.

Started as a food shop by Italian chef Antonio Carluccio and his wife in 1991, Carluccio's operated as a wholesale business before opening its first "caffe" in London, in 1999.

It now has more than 45 sites across the country, plus locations in Ireland and across the Middle East. It has numerous sites within shopping centres, including at Silverburn in Glasgow, and at the new Woking development.