Sweets in the 1950s

Britain started the 1950s with sweets still rationed. By the end of the decade, a string of new sweets had arrived that are still remembered today, and several are still sold.

1950: Spangles on the ration

Mars launched Spangles, square boiled sweets, in 1950. Sweets were still rationed, and buying them needed ration points as well as money. Spangles were cleverly priced: they needed only one point, instead of the two needed for other sweets and chocolate. They were discontinued in 1984: see Spangles

1953: the end of rationing

Sweet rationing finally ended in February 1953, nearly eight years after the war: see sweet rationing in Britain. The same year, Bassett's relaunched its Peace Babies as Jelly Babies, the name they still carry: see what were Jelly Babies originally called?

1954: Love Hearts

Swizzels, which had moved to New Mills in Derbyshire during the Blitz in 1940, began making Love Hearts in 1954, tablet sweets printed with short messages: see Love Hearts

1957: the Drumstick

Swizzels followed with the Drumstick in 1957, a chewy lolly about 5 cm long in milk and raspberry flavours: see Drumstick lollies

1959: Caramac and Opal Fruits

Two new names arrived at the end of the decade. Mackintosh's launched Caramac, a caramel flavoured bar, in 1959. Its name, from caramel and Mackintosh, was chosen in a competition at the firm's Norwich factory, won by Barbara Herne. It was withdrawn in 2023 and brought back for a limited time in 2024: see Caramac. In the autumn of 1959, Mars launched Opal Fruits, chewy fruit sweets named through a competition won by Peter Phillips, who received £5. They were made in Slough, in four flavours: strawberry, lemon, orange and lime. By 1998 the name had been swapped for Starburst in the UK and Ireland: see Opal Fruits

And from the 1960s

The next decade brought Galaxy, Toffee Crisp, the modern Creme Egg and Twix: see sweets from the 1960s. For the decades after, see what sweets were popular in the 1970s?

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