Mmmmm, chocolate
Nothing says childhood like chocolate, and nothing says chocolate like Cadbury.
In a time before internet and ad blocking, we were all forced to sit through commercials that drilled their way into our subconscious forever, be they for good or bad, and when it came to Cadbury's chocolate ads, they were certainly good.
If there's one thing we've learned from looking back on these Cadbury ads from days of yore, it's that advertising standards were really lax back in the day.
Cadbury's Caramel Bunny
Ask a group of 20/30-something Irish men about when they first fell in love with chocolate and we guarantee you that this little lady bunny will come up in conversation. Voiced by Miriam Margolyes, the Cadbury twist on the tale of 'The Tortoise and the Hare' was, we can tell now, much too inappropriate for children and yet it (mostly) went right over our heads. Still, definitely one of the most iconic chocolate ads and characters ever.
Cadbury's Crunchie
Anyone over the age of 25 knows the lyrics to 'I'm so excited' off by heart thanks to this. You just can't not think of either the term 'Friday Feeling', roller coasters, weird chocolate people in a honeycomb world or The Pointer Sisters anytime anyone utters the phrase 'I'm so excited'. It really makes us feel 10-years-old again, when the weekend lasted an eternity.
Cadbury's Milk Tray
Remember when you were younger, and there were some chocolates that were for you, and some that were only for grownups unless it was an occasion and you were blessed enough to be offered one? That's what Milk Tray was all about. And the ads meant business too. They're in the process of bringing back the Milk Tray Man now, but he'll never come close to the James Bond of chocolate we all grew up with.
Just don't dip into the second layer before the first one is empty. That's heresy.
Cadbury's Flake
Another one for the 'wholly inappropriate for children' annals of history, the Flake ads were all about ladies having lots of private lady time alone with their chocolate, and we'll just leave it there. This version swapped out the lyrics from a previous ad for an instrumental version, but we still now all the words.
Cadbury's Roses
Ah Roses, the perennial Christmas favourite that always leaves you squabbling with siblings for the best ones and then playing with the tin foil and making it into little men (maybe that was just us). And of course, there was the ad that got stuck in your head for decades. Press play below at your peril.
Honourable mention
We couldn't do a list of Cadbury ads without including the excellent and instant classic 'Phil Collins gorilla' from 2007. Just as bonkers as it is uplifting, and who doesn't want 'In The Air Tonight' stuck in their heads for the rest of the day? That drum solo...