7 snacks from the 1980s that are gone from shelves forever

Discontinued in 2011 due to health concerns and a high sugar content, the Panda Pop was a beloved fizzy beverage that came in a variety of fun flavours. 

The vibrantly-coloured soft drink was made by Nichols plc and was on the market for 35 years before the company axed it to make healthier alternatives. The drink came in fun flavours, including blue raspberry, cola, and strawberry. 

HELLO!’s Commerce Partnership Editor Carla Challis said: “I was obsessed with Panda Pops (Cherryade flavour) – they were banned because of high sugar content. Oopsie!”

The original Space Dust was a granular popping candy that dominated during the 80s sugar rush. Exploding and crackling once it hit the tongue, the sugary powder was sold in small sachets and was sometimes nicknamed Cosmic Candy. 

Available in flavours like strawberry, cola, cherry, and orange, the treat was rebranded under the new name Fizz Wizz. 

“As a child of the 80s, I somehow survived on zero fruit and veg, no water, but fully filled on snacks riddled with now-banned E numbers. Space Dust, which crackled on your tongue, was a firm favourite at school,” remembered HELLO! Magazine Editor Jessica Callan.

Described as containing five treats in one bar, the 54321 bar was made famous after its jingle took the 80s by storm. Produced by McVitie’s, the bar was promoted via a TV advert that used the style of Manfred Mann’s ‘5-4-3-2-1’ song. 

The bar itself was made up of layers of chocolate-coated wafer, caramel, rice krispies, and fondant and was a firm favourite during that decade. 

Special Projects Editor at HELLO!, Katherine Robinson, revealed: “I loved 5,4,3,2,1 bars – which were advertised with the catchiest jingle in the world! If I’m honest, they were nothing special – chocolate, wafer, caramel and crisped rice… but the amusement value of annoying my big brothers by singing the theme tune was the gift that just kept on giving.”

Every 80s child will recall whipping out a chocolate cigarette from a packet, placing it between their lips and pretending to drag from the long cylinder stick. 

The vintage snacks were iconic and were wrapped up just like the real thing in white paper with a brown wrapping on the end to act as a makeshift filter. Usually containing eight in a pack, the gimmick was a beloved 80s treat. 

Editor Jessica also shared her memories of the unique take on a chocolate treat and said: “Us eight-year-olds all pretended they were real Marlboros.” 

They were phased out following the Tobacco Advertising and Promotion Act in the early 2000s, as critics argued they desensitised children to the harmful effects of smoking.

Otherwise known as Snickers, the Marathon chocolate bar was a staple of any 80s household snack cupboard. 

A nutty delight, the bar consisted of a nougat layer that was topped with peanuts and gooey caramel and wrapped in a blanket of milk chocolate. 

The bar was rebranded in the UK to what we know it as these days in the 1990s, as it didn’t align with the rest of the bar’s global packaging and name. 

Another old favourite that might look a tad familiar, Opal Fruits were essentially what we would understand to be Starbursts in this era. The chewy sweets’ manufacturers switched the name to its current moniker in 1998. 

Coming in an array of fruity flavours, Opal Fruits were originally sold as strawberry, lemon, lime, and orange chews before more choices were added.

The vintage wrapping was brought back to shelves by Mars Wrigley for a brief time in 2020 due to demand.  

Shaped like the Egyptian pyramids, this snack was made by the people who brought us Terry’s chocolate orange and was introduced in the 80s, only to be discontinued a decade later. 

It was made out of dark chocolate and was filled with a minty fondant inside. In the 90s, the pyramid was replaced by a bar that featured triangular-shaped segments.