Facts about HP sauce

Did you know...

HP, the UK's number one brown sauce was first produced in 1903.

Since then the sauce has become so popular that a whopping 28 million bottles are consumed in a year.

The range of sauces include HP fruity, HP steak sauce, HP reduced salt and sugar and the HP BBQ range.

The original recipe for HP sauce was invented and developed in 1896 by Frederick Gibson Garton, a grocer from Nottingham.

Mr Garton sold the recipe for the sum of £150 and the settlement of some unpaid bills to Edwin Samson Moore, the founder of the Midlands Vinegar Company, who launched HP sauce in 1903.

HP stands for "Houses of Parliament", as it was rumoured that the sauce had been seen in one of the dining rooms of the famous landmark.

An early advert for HP sauce drew inspiration from a well-known nursery rhyme "Mary had a little lamb with lots of HP Sauce".

Private Eye's Parlimentary news section is called "HP Sauce".