In what year did McVitie's launch Hobnobs?

McVitie’s launched Hobnobs in 1985.

Hobnobs are oat biscuits made by McVitie’s, a British brand whose roots go back to the Scottish firm McVitie & Price. The biscuit was developed as a sweet, crunchy oat product with a texture often compared with a cross between a digestive biscuit and a flapjack. Rolled oats are its defining ingredient.

The plain Hobnob became a major success, and McVitie’s followed it with a milk-chocolate version in 1987. Other varieties have since included dark chocolate, chocolate orange and Hobnob bars. Plain Hobnobs are made at McVitie’s Stockport factory, while the chocolate variety has been associated with the Harlesden factory in north-west London.

The name can cause confusion because “hobnob” is also an English verb meaning to socialize, especially with important or influential people. Some popular explanations connect the word to home cooking or the biscuit’s knobbly texture, but the established product launch date remains 1985.