Latest news with #Hobnob
Irish Daily Mirror
25-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Daily Mirror
The real reason behind the name of McVitie's Hobnobs is leaving fans baffled
The inventor of the beloved biscuit, McVities' Hobnobs has revealed the meaning behind the iconic biscuit's name, leaving fans baffled at the unlikely reason behind the treat's name. All was revealed in Channel 4's The Secret World of Biscuits when the creator was quizzed over the Hobnob's name, which launched in supermarkets in 1985, the Mirror UK reports. Pam Langworthy, who helped develop and market the British delight, said: "[The focus groups] said [the biscuit] was knobbly, because, you know, it wasn't a very smooth finish in the way, for instance, Digestive or Rich Tea are. And they said it looked as if somebody had made it at home, maybe made it on a hob." She added: "And so, I wanted a name that was very easy to say and just rolled off the tongue. And so, 'Hobnob'." These biscuits have become hugely popular since the 80s, but arguably not as much as McVities' most popular biscuit worldwide, which is the unbeatable digestive. However, according to British Corner Shop, McVities Hobnobs are available in physical stores in France, USA, Italy, Germany, Canada, Spain, Austria and Denmark. The name Hobnob also derives from the British verb 'to hobnob'. It means to spend time being friendly with someone important or a celebrity. Mindblowing, right? Despite focus groups almost steering biscuit makers towards the name all those years ago, it wasn't a done deal from the off. Andrew Easdale, a co-worker of Pam, explained that their superiors wanted to keep it more 'homely'. He explained: 'There was a sort of I wouldn't say a stunned silence, but there was a, um, hmmm, followed by, 'couldn't you call it something a bit more descriptive, like 'oaty crunchies? I said, 'No, it's gonna be Hobnobs. We need a brand.' Thankfully, the name 'Hobnobs' was agreed and it has become a household name ever since.
Daily Mirror
24-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
McVities Hobnobs and the real reason behind biscuit's name leaving fans baffled
McVities' brand has become a household name worldwide, but do you know the story behind the name of their biscuits Hobnobs? It's so British - but it has caused some confusion. The inventor of the iconic and beloved tea-dunking biscuit, McVities' Hobnobs, has revealed the meaning behind the iconic biscuit 's name. Fans have been left baffled by the unlikely reason behind the rugged-edged treat's name, but it's genius. All was revealed in Channel 4 's The Secret World of Biscuits when the creator was quizzed over the Hobnob's name, which launched in supermarkets in 1985. Pam Langworthy, who helped develop and market the British delight, said: "[The focus groups] said [the biscuit] was knobbly, because, you know, it wasn't a very smooth finish in the way, for instance, Digestive or Rich Tea are. And they said it looked as if somebody had made it at home, maybe made it on a hob." She added: "And so, I wanted a name that was very easy to say and just rolled off the tongue. And so, 'Hobnob'." These biscuits have become hugely popular since the 80s, but arguably not as much as McVities' most popular biscuit worldwide, which is the unbeatable digestive. However, according to British Corner Shop, McVities Hobnobs are available in physical stores in France, USA, Italy, Germany, Canada, Spain, Austria and Denmark. The name Hobnob also derrives from the British verb 'to hobnob'. It means to spend time being friendly with someone important or a celebrity. Mindblowing, right? Hobnobs had a hard time at first Despite focus groups almost steering biscuit makers towards the name all those years ago, it wasn't a done deal from the off. Andrew Easdale, a co-worker of Pam, explained that their superiors wanted to keep it more 'homely'. He explained: 'There was a sort of I wouldn't say a stunned silence, but there was a, um, hmmm, followed by, 'couldn't you call it something a bit more descriptive, like 'oaty crunchies? I said, 'No, it's gonna be Hobnobs. We need a brand.' Thankfully, the name 'Hobnobs' was agreed and it has become a household name ever since. McVities has now become a popular brand, especially in the UK. The brand has climbed the biscuit ladder, and has been recognised for its iconic Jaffa Cakes, Rich Tea, as well as the famous digestives. Their brand is often the top choice by shoppers and a staple in many UK households as their go-to tea-dunking biscuits. As reported by Statista, it was estimated that 8.7 million people in the UK consumed McVities Chocolate Digestives, with 6.5 million plain McVities Digestives being consumed every day in the UK. Those numbers just prove how delicious these biscuits are, and how have they continue to be a household staple since their launch.
Daily Mirror
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Wagon Wheel chocolate leaves Brits baffled as name has nothing to do with shape
Wagon Wheels have been a firm favourite in British lunchboxes for generations - but there's a mind-blowing reason behind the iconic name which has left everyone baffled The inspiration behind the name of Wagon Wheels has a fun backstory, and it's not related to their shape. Despite their circular shape resembling an old-fashioned cart wheel, this isn't the reason for their name. They're actually named after a specific cultural trend. These iconic treats consist of two chocolate biscuits sandwiching a marshmallow filling, all covered in milk chocolate, and sometimes filled with jam. They were invented in the 1940s by William Peschardt, who sold the patent to Garry Weston, son of British MP and food company owner Willard Garfield Weston. Wagon Wheels hit the market in 1948 and made their debut at the Olympia Food Fair where Garry Weston introduced them as the "biggest chocolate biscuit bar", according to HuffPost. However, there were grumbles that Wagon Wheels weren't "creative enough". Initially, the snack was simply marshmallow sandwiched between two biscuits and smothered in chocolate - without any jam. Their original moniker was Weston's Wagon Wheels, inspired by western cowboy films, which led to the birth of this now widely recognised sweet treat, as previously reported by The Mirror. Western films were all the rage back in the day, boasting big names such as John Wayne, a factor that led to the enduring name of the beloved Wagon Wheel biscuit. Now owned by Burton's Biscuits, these treats are flying off the shelves, with an astonishing 125 million Wagon Wheels snatched up yearly. But it's not just Wagon Wheels that have biscuit lovers' hearts; Hobnobs have also secured their status as a biscuit tin staple among Brits who love dunking them in their tea. Curiosity was piqued when Channel 4's 'The Secret World Of Biscuits' unveiled the secret behind the Hobnob's unique name and how it kept its nose ahead in the biscuity race. The show revealed that the Hobnob, launched in supermarkets in 1985, owes its distinctive nubbin texture to the flapjack-inspired inclusion of oats by McVitie's. Pam, who was responsible for managing the McVitie's team tasked with conjuring up this novel treat, shared: "[The focus groups] said [the biscuit] was knobbly, because, you know, it wasn't a very smooth finish in the way, for instance, Digestive or Rich Tea are. And they said it looked as if somebody had made it at home, maybe made it on a hob." She added: "And so, I wanted a name that was very easy to say and just rolled off the tongue. And so, 'Hobnob'."
The Independent
24-02-2025
- Health
- The Independent
Eating too many ultra-processed foods? This is how to cut back without cutting corners
It's hard to look at a packet of Monster Munch or a chocolate biscuit now without the words 'ultra-processed food' (UPF) flashing through your brain. It's almost enough to put you off, but then you get sucked in by the nostalgia factor of Frazzles or a desperate need to dunk a Hobnob in a cup of tea. Or maybe not. If you've read Ultra-Processed People by TV doctor Chris van Tulleken, you might already be religiously checking the labels on your favourite snacks, pasta sauces, cereals, yoghurt, sausages, vegan meat alternatives and – worst of all – bread. You might even be putting them back on the supermarket shelf when you realise half the ingredients are pure gobbledegook; a confusing blur of additives, emulsifiers, preservatives and flavour enhancers, none of which resemble any real ingredients you could buy individually. UPFs 'are industrially processed foods and contain ingredients that aren't typically used in home kitchens,' explains food writer and registered nutritionist Delicia Bale. 'They're also normally high in calories, fat, saturated fat, sugar, salt and low in fibre and micronutrients. In research, they have been described as 'hyper palatable' – they're designed to be over-consumed.' That's why, once you pop you can't stop with crisps, why a packet of chocolate buttons is gone without you even realising, and why two slices of white bread doesn't seem to touch the sides. And the other problem is, some things you would never expect to be ultra-processed, are, like stock cubes, shop-bought pastry ('One of the harder ones to make from scratch,') and mayonnaise. 'It's going to go off quite quickly if you make it yourself. I swap it for Greek yogurt,' says Bale. 'If you find one that's not too sour tasting, it'll work quite well and it also increases the protein slightly and decreases the fat in recipes.' Even some tins of coconut milk have added emulsifiers. 'I don't really understand why, because coconut milk still separates, even with an emulsifier in it,' says Bale, bemused. Then there's bread, which she calls 'probably the most widely consumed ultra-processed food'. Homemade, it's just four ingredients: flour, salt, water and yeast. But check the back of your supermarket loaf and the ingredients list may shock you. Even when you are aware of UPFs and the many health dangers associated with eating them, including an increased risk of obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart disease and certain cancers, they are ubiquitous, so can feel borderline inescapable. Which is why Bale, 27, has written her debut cookbook, Unprocessed Made Easy. 'When reducing UPFs in people's diets, they don't really know where to start,' she says. 'So my book is focused on direct swaps for foods that typically are processed.' She provides homemade trades for everything from granola and pancakes, to noodles, soups, pizza and burgers, while keeping costs low and, crucially, meal prepping speedy. Because this is the major issue; besides UPFs being so darned delicious and available, it seems so much quicker and easier to just buy the tinned soup or the plastic-wrapped ready meal, than buy a set of ingredients, then go home and transform it into a meal. 'People have less time, so they rely on those foods,' says Bale, without judgement. But the fact is, 'a meta analysis on ultra-processed foods found that, looking at all the different studies so far, there's been no positive association seen with consuming UPFs.' Unless you count the taste. Bale's mother was a personal trainer, so she grew up eating 'pretty healthy' and has been interested in eating well since. While studying nutrition at the University of Surrey, she began writing recipes and fell in love with food photography. Now she has 116k followers on Instagram and one million likes on TikTok. She says her interest in tackling UPF consumption comes from the fact 'it's not about restricting one particular type of food. Obviously, restrictive diets aren't sustainable, I like this [area of nutrition] because I think [reducing UPFs] is something people can maintain long term.' Growing up in Canada has also had a major impact on her understanding of food. 'The way people eat here is quite different,' she says of Britain. '[In Canada] people's main meals would be more unhealthy, but here, people's meals are generally pretty healthy, but then they're eating a lot of the high fat, high sugar, high salt snack foods. People don't really eat crisps or chocolate every single day [in Canada], and then I moved here, and that's what people were eating in their packed lunch.' Compared to other countries, Britain is something of a UPF stronghold. 'When we're comparing ourselves to every European country, and especially Mediterranean countries, they're still consuming some UPFs, but it's only about 10 to 20 per cent [of their diet] whereas here, it's closer to 60 per cent,' says Bale. A study in 2019 found it was a whopping 57 per cent, and for teenagers, closer to 80 per cent. She's not asking you to go full on cold turkey though. 'I still do eat some UPFs,' she admits. 'It's quite difficult to avoid, especially in social situations. I don't think it's something that needs to be removed from people's diets entirely. I just think it needs to be reduced by quite a lot.' She recommends starting off by swapping one meal a day for something non ultra-processed and 'not feeling like they have to remove everything all at once, because that can be quite overwhelming, and also not thinking they need to completely cut it out and never eat it again. A restrictive mindset makes it so people, if they eat one UPF, they think, 'Oh no, I've broken my diet,' and then they give up trying.' Bale is adamant: 'It doesn't have to be difficult to make changes to your diet and eat healthier or eat less UPFs. It doesn't have to be super complicated.' You can do it. 'Unprocessed Made Easy' by Delicia Bale ANutr (Ebury Press, £20).
