Skips

Skips is a snack brand sold primarily in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It was introduced in 1974 in a prawn cocktail flavour and became associated with a distinctive melt-in-the-mouth eating experience. The product is made from a light, expanded starch base rather than the conventional sliced potato associated with many crisps. Its fine texture causes the pieces to fizz and dissolve on the tongue, a characteristic that has been central to the brand's product identity and advertising language. The snack has been compared with Indonesian prawn crackers because of its airy structure and seafood-oriented flavour profile, although Skips are smaller and have a finer texture. In the United Kingdom, the product is made using tapioca starch. In Ireland, the formulation uses maize starch. The brand is produced by KP Snacks under licence from Intersnack, the German snack-food group that owns the brand. In the Republic of Ireland, the product is sold under the Tayto brand, which is also owned by Intersnack. Prawn cocktail remains the best-known and most enduring Skips flavour. Over time, the range has also included products such as pickled onion, Caribbean Spice curry, Hot from Rio chilli, Chinese spare rib, Sweetcorn Relish, and Sweet'n'Sour. Some variants were limited editions or have since been discontinued. In 2002, KP introduced Buzz Boltz and Tickle Pickle as experimental extensions built around different eating sensations. Buzz Boltz was promoted as offering a “crunch-melt” experience, while Tickle Pickle was described as having a “puff-melt” sensation; neither remains part of the established range. Skips has traditionally used playful, child-oriented communication. Packets have carried jokes and tongue twisters on their reverse, reinforcing the brand's family and children's-snacking associations. Its advertising has also used recurring comic devices, including an anthropomorphic tongue in a later campaign voiced by actor Craig Charles. Earlier advertising featured wrestler Giant Haystacks and used the closing line “Dainty aren't they?”, while actress Daniela Denby-Ashe appeared in a Skips advertisement as a teenager. The brand has also been connected with children's entertainment through sponsorship of Dragon's Fury, an attraction at Chessington World of Adventures. The product underwent a nutritional reformulation beginning in early 2006. The change reduced saturated fat by 30 percent and sodium by 10 percent, and the snacks were made with 100 percent sunflower oil. The brand has also been described as containing no artificial colours or artificial flavourings. These changes placed Skips within the broader reformulation and ingredient-transparency direction seen across the packaged-snack sector, while retaining its signature texture and flavour identity. In 2012, United Biscuits sold KP Snacks and the Skips brand to Intersnack. The transaction moved the brand into the portfolio of a major European snack-food group while KP Snacks continued to manufacture Skips under licence. Skips therefore combines a long-established British brand identity with an ownership and production structure spanning the United Kingdom, Ireland, and continental Europe.

Skips entered the United Kingdom snack market in 1974 as a prawn cocktail-flavoured product. Its format differentiated it from ordinary potato crisps: the pieces were small, light, and made from an expanded starch base. Their fine structure produced a characteristic sensation as they fizzed and melted on the tongue. This eating experience became the central functional and emotional attribute of the brand and helped distinguish Skips from both conventional crisps and larger prawn-cracker products. The snack developed a strong association with children's consumption and family shopping. Packets commonly included jokes or tongue twisters on the back, using the packaging as a form of play and encouraging interaction beyond the product itself. Advertising extended this tone through memorable comic characters and slogans. In the 1980s, wrestler Giant Haystacks appeared in a television commercial that ended with the line “Dainty aren't they?”. Actress Daniela Denby-Ashe also appeared in a Skips advertisement as a teenager. A later advertising series used actor Craig Charles as the voice of an anthropomorphic tongue representing the consumer's tongue, closing with the phrase “Stick a Skip on your tongue; it asked for it!”. The brand's cultural footprint also extended into entertainment and licensing. Skips sponsored Dragon's Fury, a children's attraction at Chessington World of Adventures. The Clumsy Colin character from contemporary Skips advertising appeared in Action Biker, a mid-1980s budget computer game released by Mastertronic; the game's case artwork also carried KP Skips branding. These associations reinforced the product's child-focused positioning and made the brand visible across television, leisure attractions, and popular home-computer culture. Although prawn cocktail became the signature flavour, the brand periodically tested alternatives. Historical flavours and variants included pickled onion, Caribbean Spice curry, Hot from Rio chilli, Chinese spare rib, Sweetcorn Relish, Sweet'n'Sour, and limited-edition ReBoot products in doughnut and pizza flavours. In 2002, KP launched Buzz Boltz and Tickle Pickle, two variants explicitly marketed around sensory differences. Buzz Boltz promised a crunch-melt effect, while Tickle Pickle offered a puff-melt sensation. Both were eventually withdrawn, leaving the classic range and selected flavour extensions as the more durable expression of the brand. A significant product-development step took place in early 2006, when Skips underwent nutritional reformulation. Saturated fat was reduced by 30 percent and sodium by 10 percent. The product also moved to 100 percent sunflower oil and was described as containing no artificial colours or artificial flavourings. The reformulation sought to improve the nutritional profile without abandoning the texture that made the snack recognisable. The ownership structure changed in 2012. United Biscuits sold KP Snacks and Skips to Intersnack, a German snack-food company. Intersnack became the brand owner, while KP Snacks continued to manufacture Skips under licence. The arrangement placed a familiar British snack name within a broader European snack portfolio. In Ireland, Skips are sold under the Tayto brand, which is likewise owned by Intersnack; formulations also differ by market, with tapioca starch used in the United Kingdom and maize starch used in Ireland. Skips remains an active brand associated with the United Kingdom and Ireland. Its enduring identity rests on three linked elements: the original prawn cocktail flavour, the light starch-based format, and the distinctive melt-on-the-tongue sensation. Its packaging humour, children's advertising, and periodic flavour experimentation have allowed the brand to retain a playful identity while adapting its ownership, production arrangements, and nutritional formulation over time.

• 2012

  Intersnack acquires the brand

  [1]Skips (snack)en.wikipedia.org

  United Biscuits sells KP Snacks and Skips to Intersnack.

• 2006

  Nutritional reformulation begins

  [1]Skips (snack)en.wikipedia.org

  Skips reduce saturated fat and sodium and adopt 100 percent sunflower oil.

• 2002

  Buzz Boltz and Tickle Pickle launch

  [1]Skips (snack)en.wikipedia.org

  KP introduces two sensory-focused variations, later discontinued.

• 1985

  Sweetcorn Relish flavour appears

  [1]Skips (snack)en.wikipedia.org

  Sweetcorn Relish is listed among the historical Skips flavours, associated with a yellow packet.

• 1974

  Skips launches in prawn cocktail flavour

  [1]Skips (snack)en.wikipedia.org

  The snack brand is introduced in the United Kingdom with its signature prawn cocktail flavour.

A playful, family-oriented snack positioned around its distinctive fizzing and melting texture, light format, and classic prawn cocktail flavour.

• Puffed starch snack · 1974

  Skips Prawn Cocktail

  The signature Skips product, first launched in 1974. It consists of small, airy pieces with a prawn cocktail flavour and a fine texture designed to fizz and melt on the tongue. The United Kingdom version is made with tapioca starch, while the Irish formulation uses maize starch. It remains the brand's defining and best-known offering.

• Flavoured puffed snack · 2002

  Buzz Boltz

  A Skips variation launched by KP in 2002 and promoted around a “crunch-melt” eating experience. It was developed as a sensory extension of the core brand concept but has since been discontinued.

• Flavoured puffed snack · 2002

  Tickle Pickle

  A 2002 Skips variation designed around a “puff-melt” sensation. Like Buzz Boltz, it tested a new texture and flavour concept but is no longer sold as part of the established range.

• 2000Anthropomorphic tongue advertising

  United Kingdom

  A series of television advertisements used an anthropomorphic tongue, voiced by actor Craig Charles, to dramatise the product's characteristic tongue-melting sensation.

  Outcome. The campaign used the closing line “Stick a Skip on your tongue; it asked for it!”.

  Source
• 1980Giant Haystacks television advertising

  United Kingdom

  Wrestler Giant Haystacks appeared in a Skips television advertisement that contrasted his imposing image with the snack's small, delicate format.

  Outcome. The advert is remembered for the closing line “Dainty aren't they?”.

  Source
• 1980Children's packaging humour

  United Kingdom · Ireland

  Skips packets used jokes and tongue twisters on their reverse as part of a recurring child-oriented communication approach.

  Outcome. The packaging reinforced the brand's playful family-snacking identity.

  Source
• 1980Dragon's Fury sponsorship

  United Kingdom

  Skips sponsored Dragon's Fury, a popular attraction at Chessington World of Adventures, extending the brand's children's positioning into an entertainment venue.

  Source

• 2012

  Sale of KP Snacks and Skips to IntersnackM&A

  Background

  United Biscuits owned KP Snacks and the Skips brand before the transaction.

  Action taken

  United Biscuits sold KP Snacks and Skips to Intersnack. KP Snacks continued to manufacture Skips under licence.

  Aftermath

  Skips became part of Intersnack's international snack portfolio. In Ireland, the product is sold under the Tayto brand, also owned by Intersnack.

  Source

• 2006

  Nutritional reformulationStrategy

  Background

  Skips adjusted its recipe during a period when packaged-food brands were placing greater emphasis on fat, sodium, and ingredient claims.

  Action taken

  The brand reduced saturated fat by 30 percent and sodium by 10 percent, changed to 100 percent sunflower oil, and stated that the product contained no artificial colours or flavourings.

  Aftermath

  The reformulation preserved the brand's established texture and flavour identity while giving the product a revised nutritional profile.

  Source

• 2012

  United Biscuits sells KP Snacks and Skips to Intersnack[1]Skips (snack)en.wikipedia.org

  M&A

  The Skips brand and KP Snacks were sold by United Biscuits to German snack-food company Intersnack. KP continued to make Skips under licence, while the brand became part of Intersnack's wider portfolio.

• 2006

  Skips undergoes fat and sodium reduction[1]Skips (snack)en.wikipedia.org

  Other

  Beginning in early 2006, the brand reduced saturated fat by 30 percent and sodium by 10 percent, while changing to 100 percent sunflower oil.

• 2002

  KP introduces new Skips variations Buzz Boltz and Tickle Pickle[1]Skips (snack)en.wikipedia.org

  Product launch · Product generation

  KP launched two experimental Skips variants designed around different sensory effects: Buzz Boltz with a crunch-melt experience and Tickle Pickle with a puff-melt sensation. Both products were later discontinued.

1. 1Skips (snack)en.wikipedia.org