A Retro Drinks Crossover
A new design doing the rounds online proposes a flavour crossover that feels both plausible and slightly nostalgic: a Lilt Tropical edition of the M&S Colin the Caterpillar cake. The mockup places the familiar caterpillar in a bright yellow and green box, borrowing the classic Lilt wordmark and colour scheme.
The concept is an interesting one because Lilt, as a standalone brand, was officially retired in the UK in February 2023. After almost 50 years on shelves, the pineapple and grapefruit drink was absorbed into the Fanta family, and is now sold as Fanta Pineapple & Grapefruit. This makes the mockup a tribute to a recently departed brand, leaning on a name that is no longer part of Coca-Cola’s active roster.
The Colin the Caterpillar Range
For Marks & Spencer, Colin is far more than just a single cake. The character anchors a vast range of products that extends well beyond the original chocolate sponge roll. The core offering includes the full-size cake and shrink-wrapped Mini Colin the Caterpillar Cakes, but the real expansion has been in confectionery.
The current lineup features an entire sweetshop’s worth of variants: Colin the Caterpillar Softies, Speckles, Cola Gums, Fruit Gums, Cherry Gums, and two sour versions, Sour Stomps and Fruit Sours. The brand even extends to party supplies, with official Colin the Caterpillar Paper Plates, Party Cups and a mixed ‘Party Time’ bag. While M&S has produced seasonal versions of Colin for years, a soft-drink collaboration for the cake itself would be a first.
The Lilt Brand
Launched in the UK in 1975, Lilt was marketed for decades with the strapline ‘the totally tropical taste’. Its flavour profile, a simple combination of pineapple and grapefruit, remained consistent throughout its life, even as it introduced diet and zero-sugar versions. The brand’s advertising, particularly the ‘Lilt Man’ commercials of the late 1980s, cemented its identity as a distinctly Caribbean-themed drink.
Its eventual rebranding as Fanta Pineapple & Grapefruit was positioned by parent company Coca-Cola as a logical move to bring the flavour into the larger, globally recognised Fanta ecosystem. The recipe itself remained unchanged.
What the real range looks like
The official M&S range includes the original Colin the Caterpillar Cake, Mini Colin Cakes, and a wide variety of sweets like Softies, Speckles, Cola Gums, and Fruit Sours. A drinks-brand crossover like Lilt Tropical would be a new direction for the cake format, which has previously only had seasonal makeovers.
- M S Colin the Caterpillar Cake
- M S Colin the Caterpillar Softies
- M S Colin the Caterpillar Speckles
- M S Colin the Caterpillar Cola Gums
- M S Mini Colin the Caterpillar Cakes
- M S Colin the Caterpillar Fruit Gums
- M S Colin the Caterpillar Party Cups
- M S Colin the Caterpillar Party Time
- M S Colin the Caterpillar Sour Stomps
- M S Colin the Caterpillar Cherry Gums
Frequently asked questions
- What is a Colin the Caterpillar cake?
- It’s the signature celebration cake from Marks & Spencer. The cake is a chocolate sponge log filled with chocolate buttercream, coated in milk chocolate, and decorated with sugar-coated chocolate beans and a solid white chocolate face.
- Can you still buy Lilt in the UK?
- The Lilt brand name was discontinued in early 2023. The drink is still available with the same pineapple and grapefruit recipe, but it is now sold as Fanta Pineapple & Grapefruit.
- Is the Lilt Colin the Caterpillar cake real?
- No. This Lilt Tropical Colin the Caterpillar cake is a Snackfish. The image is a mockup created by the online page UK Snack Attack and is not a real M&S product.
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- Tunnock’s Teacake Mallow Doughnuts for M&S Bakery
You have been Snackfished!
Snackfish :
[sn-a-ck-fish] verb
A snack that lies about its legitimacy as an official product online for internet clout and attention. Most commonly fabricated in Adobe Photoshop or using the unofficial Snackfish AI