I didn’t intend to deal with sponsored races in this exercise, but the name of Bertie Bassett has transcended mere advertising through its longevity. He is the mascot for liquorice allsorts made by Bassetts, which was founded in 1842 in Sheffield and has been manufactured there ever since. The Yorkshire connection inspired the Doncaster race name.
Bassetts made several types of sweet, which were all sold separately. It wasn’t until 1899, when a hapless salesman dropped a variety of them on the floor – whose appearance elicited a positive response from the customer – did “liquorice allsorts” come into being.
The character of Bertie Bassett was designed in 1929 and comprised a number of individual sweets, held together by a pipe cleaner. Now branded “Maynards Bassett”, the company is owned by Cadbury’s, which is one of numerous firms that are part of Mondelez International, a giant American food and drink manufacturer.
Bassetts sponsored a race for the first time at Doncaster’s Lincoln meeting in 1982. The race stayed on the programme until 1989.