Originally launched in 1957 by

HB Ice Cream HB Ice Cream (originally an initialisation of both Hughes Brothers and Hazelbrook Farm) is an ice cream brand in Ireland and is part of the Unilever Group's Heartbrand ice cream brand. It manufactures most of the Heartbrand's ice cream range, as w ...

(HB), the Golly Bar is an

ice cream Ice cream is a sweetened frozen food typically eaten as a snack or dessert. It may be made from milk or cream and is flavoured with a sweetener, either sugar or an alternative, and a spice, such as cocoa or vanilla, or with fruit such as str ...

formerly sold exclusively in the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. A ...

. It was a single rectangular block of

vanilla Vanilla is a spice derived from orchids of the genus ''Vanilla (genus), Vanilla'', primarily obtained from pods of the Mexican species, flat-leaved vanilla (''Vanilla planifolia, V. planifolia''). Pollination is required to make the p ...

ice cream on a wooden stick. The packaging of Golly Bars depicted an image of a

golliwog The golliwog, also spelled golliwogg or shortened to golly, is a doll-like character – created by cartoonist and author Florence Kate Upton – that appeared in children's books in the late 19th century, usually depicted as a type of rag ...

, a 19th-century caricature of a

blackface Blackface is a form of theatrical makeup used predominantly by non-Black people to portray a caricature of a Black person. In the United States, the practice became common during the 19th century and contributed to the spread of racial stereo ...

minstrel A minstrel was an entertainer, initially in medieval Europe. It originally described any type of entertainer such as a musician, juggler, acrobat, singer or fool; later, from the sixteenth century, it came to mean a specialist entertainer who ...

, which is now regarded as racist. The golliwog image was removed from the packaging in 1992. However, continued concern over any references to the image saw a name change to the Giant Bar. Giant Bars remain available for purchase across the Republic of Ireland though reorganisation of the HB brand by corporate parent

Unilever Unilever plc is a British multinational consumer goods company with headquarters in London, England. Unilever products include food, condiments, bottled water, baby food, soft drink, ice cream, instant coffee, cleaning agents, energy drink, t ...

saw the production and ownership of the Giant Bar Brand move to Northern Ireland company Dale Farm.

References

Brand name frozen desserts Irish confectionery Products introduced in 1957 {{Food-product-stub

See also

References