Panda Pops: How Britain's School Disco Drink Was Killed by Health

Panda Pops cost 10p, turned your tongue blue, and were at every school disco, birthday party and village hall in Britain for thirty-five years. They were made by a Dorset brewery that had been brewing beer since 1777. In 2005 that brewery closed the plant, 220 people lost their jobs, and the brand was sold to the makers of Vimto for £5.5 million. Six years later, Panda Pops were gone. This is the full story: how Hall & Woodhouse, the Badger beer family of Blandford Forum, started making pop in 1957; the launch of Panda Pops in the 1970s; the tuck-shop economics of a 10p bottle; the flavours (Blue Raspberry, Raspberry Jelly & Ice Cream, Cherryade); the school disco years; Jamie Oliver, the 2006 school fizzy-drinks ban and the sugar backlash; the sale to Nichols; the 2011 discontinuation; and the sugar-free "Panda" relaunch that nobody remembers. CHAPTERS 00:00 Two hundred and twenty jobs 02:15 A brewery in Dorset 03:04 From beer to pop 06:12 Ten pence 07:26 The school disco years 09:45 Jamie Oliver and the sugar war 11:30 Sold to Vimto 12:49 2011: discontinued 13:35 A panda called Melvin Every week Lost British Brands tells the true story behind a brand Britain forgot. Subscribe for a new documentary every week. Sources include Dorset Echo, The Independent, Marketing Week and Hall & Woodhouse company history. #PandaPops #LostBritishBrands #90sKids