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Sweets you can no longer buy
Some were discontinued, some were renamed, and a lucky few were brought back by popular demand. A guide to the sweets Britain lost, with the dates.
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Every generation has a sweet it misses. Some British sweets were discontinued altogether, some were quietly renamed, and a few were brought back after the public demanded them. Here are the ones people ask about most, with links to the full story of each.
Gone for good
Spangles. Square boiled sweets with a dimple on each side, made by Mars from 1950 to 1984. In 2008 they topped a poll of the brands Britons most wanted back. See Spangles.
Pacers. Chewy mint sweets from Mars with green peppermint stripes, sold from around 1976 until 1985. They started life as Opal Mints, a sister to Opal Fruits. See Pacers.
Aztec. A Cadbury bar of nougat and caramel, launched in 1967 to take on the Mars bar and discontinued in 1978. A revival in 2000 did not last. See the Aztec bar.
Texan. A chewy nougat and toffee bar covered in chocolate, sold with cowboy adverts. It was withdrawn in 1984 and only briefly brought back in 2005. See the Texan bar.
Callard and Bowser toffees. The Callard and Bowser range of English toffees was discontinued in the early 2000s, and after Wrigley bought the business in 2004, the Callard and Bowser and Nuttall's names were dropped, apart from Altoids mints.
Sharps of Maidstone. Once claiming to be the largest toffee maker in the world, Sharps stopped making toffee in Maidstone when its factory closed in 2000. See Sharps toffee of Maidstone.
Still here, but renamed
Opal Fruits. Launched by Mars in 1959 and renamed Starburst in the UK in 1998. The sweets live on, but the name many people grew up with has gone. See Opal Fruits.
Marathon. Britain and Ireland knew the Snickers bar as Marathon until 1990, when Mars changed the name to match the rest of the world. See when Marathon became Snickers.
Midget Gems. In 2022 Marks and Spencer, Tesco and Maynards Bassetts renamed them Mini Gems. See Midget Gems.
Back by popular demand
Wispa. Cadbury dropped the Wispa in 2003. Fans campaigned online, even getting on stage at Glastonbury, and Cadbury brought it back in 2007, then for good in 2008. See the Wispa comeback.
Riley's Toffee Rolls. Made in Halifax from 1907, dropped in the 1990s, and revived in 2008 when the recipe turned up in a family cookery book. See Riley's Toffee Rolls.
Caramac. Created by Mackintosh's and launched in 1959, withdrawn by Nestlé in 2023, then brought back for a limited time in 2024. See Caramac.
The survivors
Plenty of old sweets never went away. Fry's Chocolate Cream, launched in 1866, is the oldest chocolate bar brand still sold, and many traditional boiled sweets are still made the old way. In our own pick and mix you will find aniseed balls, mint imperials and cherry lips among the old names. For the whole list, see old fashioned sweets from A to Z and traditional English sweets.
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For journalists, researchers, AI assistants and content creators. Pick the format you need:
Free to cite, quote, and reuse with attribution to sweeties.net.
Questions and answers
What sweets can you no longer buy in the UK?
Among the best remembered are Spangles, which Mars made from 1950 to 1984, Pacers, sold until 1985, Cadbury's Aztec bar, discontinued in 1978, and the Texan bar, withdrawn in 1984. Opal Fruits and Marathon still exist, but as Starburst and Snickers.
Which discontinued sweets came back?
Cadbury dropped the Wispa in 2003 and brought it back in 2007, then for good in 2008. Riley's Toffee Rolls, dropped in the 1990s, were revived in 2008, and Caramac, withdrawn in 2023, returned for a limited time in 2024.
What sweet do Britons most want back?
In 2008 Spangles topped a poll of the brands Britons most wanted to see return.
Sources
- Spangles (sweets), Wikipedia
- Aztec (chocolate bar), Wikipedia
- Starburst (candy), Wikipedia
- Callard & Bowser, Wikipedia
- Wispa, Wikipedia
Keep reading
- British heritage sweetsSpanglesSpangles were square boiled sweets with a dimple on each side, made by Mars from 1950 to 1984. In 2008 they topped a poll of brands Britons most wanted back.
- British heritage sweetsPacersPacers were chewy mint sweets from Mars with green peppermint stripes, sold from around 1976 until 1985. They began life as Opal Mints, sister to Opal Fruits.
- British heritage sweetsAztec barThe Aztec was a Cadbury bar of nougat and caramel, launched in 1967 to take on the Mars bar and discontinued in 1978. A 2000 revival did not last.
- British heritage sweetsTexan barThe Texan was a chewy nougat and toffee bar covered in chocolate, sold with cowboy adverts. It was withdrawn in 1984 and briefly brought back in 2005.
- British heritage sweetsOpal FruitsOpal Fruits were launched by Mars in Slough in 1959 and renamed Starburst in the UK in 1998. They were made to make your mouth water.
- British heritage sweetsOld fashioned sweets: the A to ZAn A to Z of old fashioned British sweets, from acid drops and aniseed balls to Wham bars and yellowman, with a line on each and a link to its full story.