What would be the equivalent to Barnes and Noble in England?

I can't say I've ever seen a Barnes and Noble in the UK. W H Smith is well known but it sells more than books. Waterstone's is probably the biggest chain of just bookshops.

Charing Cross Road is well known for bookshops and it contains the largest bookshop in the UK, Foyle's. That's not part of a chain but it is BIG - once the biggest in the world. I remember when Christina Foyle was still running it as if it was a throwback to the 19th century... it was like a big scruffy warehouse, it didn't take credit cards, and it used the three-queue system to pay because she didn't trust most of the staff (not surprising when she always fired them the day before they got security of employment). Everything was on the shelves in order of publisher, which is hardly helpful for finding anything, and trying to do the stocktaking was hopeless. When Christina died, the opportunity was taken to spruce it up and it works much more sensibly now.

Another more niche chain that comes to mind and is represented in the road is Blackwell's, which started in Oxford and serves more academic needs - Oxford is dominated by the university and any bookshop there that can sell the textbooks students want is going to do well.

Pretty much all the other chains I can think of have either failed or been bought up by Waterstone's.

Waterstones which is a huge national chain. They have a huge store in Piccadilly right next to Piccadilly Circus.
Hatchards further west along Piccadilly is excellent too. As are Daunt Bookshop in Marylebone High Street
and Foyles Bookshop in Charing Cross Road near Tottenham Court Road Station
www.waterstones.com
www.dauntbooks.co.uk
www.foyles.co.uk

Barnes And Noble United Kingdom

Waterstones is the big bookshop. Whsmith is also a big one but it sells other things too. Whsmith is in all the little town while Waterstones is only in bigger town and cities.
I've never been to London myself to I can't comment on whats there