MANY of us have looked to the past to find comfort during the pandemic, from playing old songs to indulging in traditional pastimes. The latest object of our nostalgia is a real blast from the past - retro sweets, with one old brand making a big comeback.

 

What’s the brand?

Opal Fruits are returning, albeit briefly.

 

That takes me back…

Indeed, the iconic brand were a staple of the sweetie aisle from the 1960s onwards. Made by Wrigley, the individually wrapped pack of chewy sweets were made up of four original flavours - strawberry, lemon, lime and orange.

 

Made to make your mouth water…

That was the catchy jingle lyric for adverts in the UK from the 1970s - "Opal Fruits - made to make your mouth water”, and the snappy saying was coined by none other than the late BBC motorsport commentator, Murray Walker, who passed away in March at the age of 97. He had initially worked in advertising, also coming up with the bird seed slogan "Trill makes budgies bounce with health" in the 1960s.

 

As for Opal Fruits?

They were phased out in the UK in the 1990s to take on the same global marketing name “Starburst”. To match the American sweets, the lemon and lime chews were combined and a new blackcurrant flavour was added.

 

But now?

Opal Fruits are back, for 12 weeks only in the four original flavours, taking to shelves in limited edition 152g packs for £1, although current owner Mars has warned that this is the sweets' last hurrah. Victoria Gell, head of fruit confections at Mars Wrigley, said: “Our sweet factory has been working overtime to make sure Brits who love their retro treats get their fruity fix one last time before Opal Fruits disappear from shelves forever.”

 

Fans are thrilled?

Social media is awash with images of the limited edition bags being snapped up, with one fan enthusing: “First packet of actual Opal Fruits since 1998 for me. Today has peaked”. Another wrote: “Living the 80s dream!”

 

They remain one of the most memorable brand ‘name changes’?

The shift from Opal Fruits to Starburst is up there with the move from Marathon to Snickers, when the chocolate bar changed its name in the UK to bring it in line with the rest of the world back in 1990.

 

Munchies?

Now known as “After Eight Bitesize”, the pack of plain chocolate treats with a mint fondant centre were renamed Mint Munchies in 1995, having started life as Mintola.

 

Retro sweets are booming?

Various studies have found that the pandemic has made us all more nostalgic as we indulge a wistfulness for simpler times, and with that in mind. One retro firm, Jessica’s Sweets, said: “Living in Lockdown due to Covid-19 has been difficult and it seems that the UK has used this to ignite the old flame and our orders of retro sweets have gone mad.”