Editing Babycham

{{short description|Brand of sparkling perry}}
{{for|the Jamaican singer|Cham (singer)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2019}}
{{Infobox beverage
| name         = Babycham
| image        = Babycham fawn SheptonMallet.jpg
| caption      = Babycham trademark [[chamois]] outside the factory in [[Shepton Mallet]]
| type         = [[Perry]], [[alcoholic drink]]
| abv          =  6%
| proof        = 12°
| manufacturer = 
| distributor  = [[Accolade Wines]]
| origin       = [[United Kingdom]]
| introduced   = 1953
| discontinued = 
| colour       = 
| flavour      = 
| ingredients  = [[Pear]], [[soda water]]
| variants     = 
| related      = [[Champagne]], [[sparkling wine]]
| website      ={{URL|https://www.babycham.co.uk}}
| region       =[[Somerset]]
}}

'''Babycham''' ({{IPAc-en|'|b|ei|b|i:|sh|ae|m}}) is a light (6% ABV), sparkling [[perry]] invented by [[Francis Showering]], a brewer in [[Shepton Mallet]], [[Somerset]], England. The name was owned by [[Accolade Wines]] until 2021, when it was bought back into the Showering family business Brothers Drinks Limited.<ref>{{Cite news|date=2021-12-07|title=Babycham deer revamped to celebrate its Somerset homecoming|language=en-GB|work=BBC News|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-somerset-59562192|access-date=2022-02-04}}</ref> The brand was particularly popular during the 1960s and 1970s.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-25302633 | work=BBC News | title=How Babycham changed British drinking habits | date=23 December 2013}}</ref> The new owners are planning a major rebrand and relaunch of the drink.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Thorpe |first=Vanessa |date=2023-02-26 |title=Make mine a Babycham! Return of the drink that added sparkle to the 70s |language=en-GB |work=The Observer |url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2023/feb/26/make-mine-a-babycham-return-of-the-drink-that-added-sparkle-to-the-70s |access-date=2023-02-27 |issn=0029-7712}}</ref>

== History ==
[[Francis Showering]] first submitted his new drink to the [[Three Counties (Gloucestershire, Herefordshire and Worcestershire)|Three Counties]] Agricultural Show and other agricultural shows in the late 1940s and early 1950s where it was found to be popular. Initially called "baby champ", it later became Babycham.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Davis|first1=Fred|title=The Anglo / The History of the Anglo Bavarian Brewery Shepton Mallet 1864 – 1994|date=1995|publisher=Haskins|pages=104–106|asin=B000S36AQM}}</ref>

Launched in the United Kingdom in 1953,<ref>{{cite web|title=Babycham Collectables|url=http://www.millersantiquesguide.com/articles/babycham/|publisher=Miller's antiques and collectables|accessdate=27 February 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140907234205/http://www.millersantiquesguide.com/articles/babycham/|archive-date=7 September 2014|url-status=usurped}}</ref>  Babycham was the first alcoholic product to be advertised on British commercial television, the campaign being launched in 1957, with the drink originally marketed as a "genuine champagne perry".<ref name="norman">{{cite book
 |url          = http://www.waitrose.com/food_drink/wfi/notesandmiscellany/nostalgia/0306090.asp
 |title        = Babycham Night: A Boyhood at the End of the Pier (Extract: The Way We Drank&nbsp;— Babycham)
 |last         = Norman
 |first        = Philip
 |authorlink   = Philip Norman (author)
 |publisher    = [[Pan Books]]
 |date         = May 2004
 |isbn         = 0-330-48056-1
 |access-date  = 2006-04-20
 |archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20060315210305/http://www.waitrose.com/food_drink/wfi/notesandmiscellany/nostalgia/0306090.asp
 |archive-date = 2006-03-15
 |url-status     = dead
}}</ref> It was the first alcoholic drink aimed specifically at women and used the catchphrase "I'd Love a Babycham".<ref>{{cite book|last1=Davis|first1=Fred|title=The Anglo / The History of the Anglo Bavarian Brewery Shepton Mallet 1864 – 1994|date=1995|publisher=Haskins|page=106|asin=B000S36AQM}}</ref>

In 1965, the Babycham Company sued the food writer [[Raymond Postgate]], founder of the ''[[Good Food Guide]]'', for an article in ''Holiday'' magazine in which he warned readers against Babycham,  which "looks like champagne and is served in champagne glasses [but] is made of pears". The company sued for libel, claiming the article implied it was dishonestly passing off Babycham as champagne. The judge in his summation stated that the article was defamatory, but that the jury could consider it as "fair comment" rather than a factual statement. The jury found for Postgate, and he was awarded costs.<ref>Law Reports, Oct 30, Nov 2, Nov 4, 1965, The Times Digital Archive</ref>

During the 1960s, Showerings stopped brewing [[beer]] to concentrate on cider and perry. Production of Babycham went from 300 dozen bottles an hour to 2,800 dozen. At the peak in June 1973 144,000 bottles were being produced each hour. To supply the production line, perry pears were planted in Somerset, [[Gloucestershire]], [[Worcestershire]] and [[Hereford]]. Until suitable trees could be grown locally, pear juice was imported from [[Switzerland]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Davis|first1=Fred|title=The Anglo / The History of the Anglo Bavarian Brewery Shepton Mallet 1864 – 1994|date=1995|publisher=Haskins|pages=108–113|asin=B000S36AQM}}</ref> The profits helped to pay for the landscaping of the gardens at the company's headquarters at [[Kilver Court]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Davis|first1=Fred|title=The Anglo / The History of the Anglo Bavarian Brewery Shepton Mallet 1864 – 1994|date=1995|publisher=Haskins|pages=115–116|asin=B000S36AQM}}</ref>

In 1978, the Babycham company was sued by French Champagne producers for abuse of their trade name. The case (''[[H. P. Bulmer|H P Bulmer Ltd]] and Showerings Ltd v [[Bollinger|J Bollinger SA]]'' [1978] RPC 79) hinged on the fact that Babycham had been described in advertising as 'champagne perry' or 'champagne cider'. Champagne producers were litigating to protect their goodwill but because there would not actually be confusion, they were unsuccessful.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.users.on.net/~roehr/notes/IntellectualProperty/IntellectualProperty-ExamNotes.pdf |title=Exam notes |website=users.on.net }}</ref>

Sales were boosted in the 1980s by advertising using the slogans "Nothing sparkles like a Babycham" and the more contemporary "Hey, Babycham".<ref>[https://www.hatads.org.uk/news/208/A-History-of-Babycham A History of Babycham], History of Advertising Trust. Retrieved 2023-08-03.</ref>

[[File:Wakefield Antique and Collectables Centre, Ridings Centre, Wakefield, West Yorkshire (10th December 2022) 001.jpg|thumb|right|Babycham glasses for sale in an antiques shop in the [[Ridings Centre]], [[Wakefield, West Yorkshire|Wakefield]].]]
The brand's appeal waned with the rise of cheaply available alternatives and a tightening up of the regulations governing [[alcohol advertising]] on television. 1993 saw a major relaunch of the brand and the reintroduction of the [[chamois]] mascot, a giant model of which can be seen outside the Shepton Mallet factory where the drink is produced. 1997 saw the reintroduction of Babycham Babe beauty contests that had been popular in the 1960s. The iconic 'Babycham' logo was designed and created by John Emperor of [[Collett Dickenson Pearce]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Babycham Sparkling Perry |url=http://www.diffordsguide.com/beer-wine-spirits/beer-cider-and-perry/cider-and-perry/BWS004254/babycham|publisher=Diffords Guide|accessdate=2 July 2014}}</ref>

The Showerings' company was bought by [[Allied Breweries]] in 1968<ref>{{Cite web |date=1995-09-08 |title=OBITUARY: Francis Showering |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/obituary-francis-showering-1600206.html |access-date=2022-09-06 |website=The Independent |language=en}}</ref> and with it the Babycham brand. The sons of the original Showerings founders went on to produce [[Brothers Cider]],<ref>{{cite book|last1=Davis|first1=Fred|title=The Anglo / The History of the Anglo Bavarian Brewery Shepton Mallet 1864 – 1994|date=1995|publisher=Haskins|pages=120–123|asin=B000S36AQM}}</ref>  and in 2021 bought the Babycham brand back from its then owner [[Accolade Wines]] for an undisclosed sum.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Devlin2021-12-07T16:56:00+00:00 |first=Edward |title=Brothers Drinks brings Babycham back under control of Showering family |url=https://www.thegrocer.co.uk/mergers-and-acquisitions/brothers-drinks-brings-babycham-back-under-control-of-showering-family/662658.article |access-date=2022-09-06 |website=The Grocer |language=en}}</ref>

== In the 2010s ==
During 2011 sales were reported to be increasing, with approximately 15&nbsp;million bottles sold each year.<ref>{{cite news|last=Beckett|first=Fiona|title=Why is Babycham popular again?|url=https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2011/nov/01/food-and-drink|work=[[The Guardian]]|accessdate=27 February 2013|location=London, England|date=1 November 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Kerslake|first=Ross|title=Blast from the perry past: Babycham|date=14 January 2013 |url=http://www.thedrinksbusiness.com/2013/01/blast-from-the-perry-past-babycham/|publisher=The Drinks Business|accessdate=27 February 2013}}</ref>

In 2013 a trademark dispute between Accolade Wines and the [[Cath Kidston Limited|Cath Kidston]] home furnishings company was taken to the [[High Court of Justice|High Court]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Babycham In Cath Kidston Logo Legal Battle|url=http://news.sky.com/story/1052309/babycham-in-cath-kidston-logo-legal-battle|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130217060427/http://news.sky.com/story/1052309/babycham-in-cath-kidston-logo-legal-battle|url-status=dead|archive-date=17 February 2013|publisher=Sky News|accessdate=27 February 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Babycham sues Cath Kidston over leaping baby deer logo|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/foodanddrinknews/9868009/Babycham-sues-Cath-Kidston-over-leaping-baby-deer-logo.html|accessdate=27 February 2013|newspaper=Telegraph|date=13 February 2013|location=London}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Babycham logo row could cost fashion firm Cath Kidston deer | url= http://www.thisissomerset.co.uk/Babycham-logo-row-cost-fashion-firm-Cath-Kidston/story-18156537-detail/story.html#ixzz2M8KMnYF3 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130823065844/http://www.thisissomerset.co.uk/Babycham-logo-row-cost-fashion-firm-Cath-Kidston/story-18156537-detail/story.html#ixzz2M8KMnYF3 | url-status= dead | archive-date= 23 August 2013 |accessdate=27 February 2013|newspaper=Western Daily Press|date=15 February 2013}}</ref>

== References ==
{{reflist}}{{Alcoholic drinks}}
[[Category:Products introduced in 1953]]
[[Category:Alcoholic drink brands]]
[[Category:British brands]]
[[Category:Culture in Somerset]]
[[Category:English alcoholic drinks]]
[[Category:Shepton Mallet]]