Why ice creams with flakes are called 99s – it has nothing to do with cost

People have been taking to social media to complain about the cost of 99p Flakes – but the name of the ice cream isn't actually anything to do with the price.

Back in the good old days, you could get a cone filled with soft serve ice cream, sweet sauce and a chocolate flake for less than a quid. But nowadays, you'd be lucky to find one for less than £2.

On X, one commenter lamented: "It's summer time, it's 1999, and you've just reached the ice cream van with a round pound coin for a Mr Whippy with a Flake and red sauce. You're handed 1p change, and life is good - well, it was back then. That's all changed now and ice cream vans this summer have been seen charging everything from £2.50 to as much as £5 for a single 99 Flake. Cozzie livs, innit?"

And another said: "Cost of living crisis is making we wonder what mad price a 99 Flake is going to be this year. £2.50? £4? £5.99? Right now I'd believe any of them, and they're all mental." Some even called for 99 Flakes to be "price capped at 99p", which sounds amazing but would probably end up putting British ice cream fans out of business!

So why even call them 99s in the first place? Contrary to common belief, the title comes from the flake rather than the ice cream itself.

While other ice creams that come in cones and tubs have different names, those that contain the iconic chocolate are typically referred to as 99s. And we have Cadbury to thank for that!

Apparently, the chocolatier picked the numerical name in a bid to appeal to Italian customers back in 1930. On the Cadbury website, a spokesperson revealed: “An ice cream served in a cone with a Flake 99 is the UK's favourite ice cream.

“In the days of the monarchy in Italy the King had an elite guard consisting of 99