Findus: Fishsticks

1963
Sound
1m

Three-shot advert showing the package, several sizzling fish fingers, and a child gratefully eating them.

As the child at the end of this ad beams with delight after having been fed Findus Fish Sticks, the soundtrack exclaims 'Freshissimo!', a made-up word that creates the impression that despite the product being intended for the freezer, the cooked end product tastes even fresher than merely fresh. Since fish sticks (or fingers) are now such a ubiquitous part of the British child's diet, it's strange to recall that they'd only been introduced to the UK in 1955, just eight years earlier.

Originating in Sweden in 1945, the Findus brand was marketed in Britain between 1958 and 2016, when it was finally discontinued. Their Fish Sticks were a rival to Birds Eye Fish Fingers, which had been devised by company founder Clarence Birdseye in 1927 but not manufactured in bulk until the 1950s. They were an immediate hit, and by the time the Findus commercial appeared fish fingers already accounted for 10% of all British fish sales. At that time, less than half the British population owned a freezer, meaning that the Fish Sticks would have had to be cooked immediately after purchase.

Food, Glorious Food!

Peckish? If you're hungry for a snapshot of our changing attitudes to food then dig in.

Whatever your taste - reliable staple or indulgent luxury, square meal or satisfying snack, essential nutrition or guilty treat - there's always an advertiser looking to make your mouth water.