Centuries back, the wealthy English were known for the "surprise" pie. This odd culinary creation was a main dish, and was brought to the banquet table with great fanfare. It was opened ceremoniously, and out of the pie leaped all sorts of live creatures: frogs, squirrels, terriers, foxes, and as the nursery rhyme claims, four-and-twenty blackbirds. At one grand party, a dueling dwarf reportedly popped out and cavorted on top of the banquet table. The serving of "surprise pies" was a gala affair for years, until Oliver Cromwell came into power. He banned the eating of pie in 1644, declaring it a pagan form of pleasure. For 16 years, pie-making and eating went underground. In 1660, the Restoration leaders lifted the ban on pie.