The real-life Willy Wonka: Brian Sollit, the 甘い-製造者 who gave the world After Eight 造幣局s, Lion 妨げる／法廷，弁護士業s and the Yorkie, dies at 74

• Brian Sollit worked for 53 years at the Rowntree's factory in York
• He was known for leaving 扱う／治療するs out on a tray for 労働者s
• His self-professed 最高潮の場面 was creating After Eight 造幣局s in 1962

By Mia De Graaf

Published: 16:36 BST, 11 September 2013 | Updated: 02:04 BST, 12 September 2013

You won’t know his 指名する, but Brian Sollitt was the genius who brought a perfect ending to countless dinner parties and family? 集会s at Christmas.

For more than half a century, the chocolatier and confectionery wizard beavered away in the kitchen of the Rowntree’s factory working on recipes and ideas for tantilising new 扱う／治療するs.

But his greatest 業績／成就 was the iconic After Eight 造幣局 ? a middle-class 必須の of the 1960s but still popular in 世帯s across the land.

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Brian Sollit referred to After Eight 造幣局s as the 最高潮の場面 of his career. Here he 現在のs a 巨大（な） 見解／翻訳／版 to 議会 to 示す the 50th 周年記念日 in December 2012

He was the 長，率いる of the 'cream' department in 1962 when he was 仕事d with coming up with a new luxurious peppermint chocolate. The result was groundbreaking

Remarkably, this one man, who has died 老年の 74, was also 伴う／関わるd in bringing Yorkies, Matchmakers, Drifters and Lion 妨げる／法廷，弁護士業s to our sweetshop 棚上げにするs.

The real-life Willy Wonka began his career? at the age of 15 when he was 新採用するd to the cream department with 責任／義務 for 手渡す 麻薬を吸うing 黒人／ボイコット 魔法 chocolates.

He was 速く transferred to the Creme Experimentation Department to become a confectioner and an artisan of his 貿易（する）.

By 1962, Mr Sollitt was 長，率いる of the section 仕事d with coming up with a new luxurious chocolate that was to be wrapped around a peppermint fondant.

Unde r a 隠す of secrecy, he was taken to one 味方する by a 上級の (n)役員／(a)執行力のある and asked to create the wafer-thin 造幣局.

To this day, the 過程 he developed of 妨げるing the liquid fondant from oozing out of the chocolate 事例／患者ing is still an 産業 secret. His 創造 has sold by the billions ever since and the Queen Mother was a big fan of the 造幣局s.

All Mr Sollitt’s ideas and 創造s were taste-実験（する）d and 精製するd before going into 集まり 生産／産物 in the factory and despatched to corner shops and newsagents in every town in the country.

One of many 創造s: Mr Sollit created the 最高の-chewy Lion 妨げる／法廷，弁護士業, 初めは known as Big Cat

The Yorkie 妨げる／法廷，弁護士業 got its 指名する from the city of York, where Rowntree's main factory is. Brian Sollit worked there for 53 years until his 退職 six years ago

The wafer-thin chocolates wrapped around a peppermint fondant that took the market by 嵐／襲撃する

During his 53 years at the factory Mr Sollitt was known for leaving seasonal 扱う／治療するs like chocolate Santas on a tray outside his office for 労働者s to take home.

Born in 1938, his childhood was 奪うd of most chocolate and sugary 甘いs 予定 to war-time rationing.

But he joined the Quaker family company after leaving school and worked with chocolate all his life.

Mr Sollitt carried on collecting anything, from 一括ing to posters, that was to do with his favourite After Eight 甘い. And last year he （機の）カム out of 退職 to make a 巨大（な） three キロ 見解／翻訳／版 of the 造幣局 chocolate to 示す its 50th 周年記念日.

Real-life Willy Wonka: Brian Sollit was compared to Roald Dahl's character Willy Wonka in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. 遺伝子 Wilder famously portrayed the character in a 1971 film

Alex Hutchinson, the historian for Nestle which now owns Rowntree’s, said: ‘Brian’s 衝撃 on the British confectionery 産業 is incalculable.

‘It is 平易な to forget that the 甘いs we 選ぶ up in the shops today are things that would have been handmade lovingly in the 早期に 行う／開催する／段階s of 開発 by Brian.

‘He spent months, or いつかs years, agonising over the technical 詳細（に述べる）s of his 創造s. He was an incredible man. He was asked to come up with this new chocolate and he did.’

Mr Sollitt also 充てるd much 成果／努力 to raise money for charity. The 技術d chocolatier made? 巨大（な） 復活祭 Eggs and once made a 3ft chocolate Pudsey 耐える for? Children In Need.

He was also a brilliant teacher and trained many confectioners in their （手先の）技術. Most of all he was a very likeable ‘larger than life’ 人物／姿／数字.

‘Everybody said you would hear him laughing and singing before you saw him,’ said 行方不明になる Hutchinson.

Confectioner 同僚 Kath Musgrove 追加するd: ‘Watching Brian at work was like watching a true craftsman at his 貿易（する）.

‘He spent hours at a marble 厚板 expertly 手渡す-covering chocolates each with their own individual 場内取引員／株価s on.

‘He was an ideas man and Brian 砲撃するd the marketing team with his thoughts on what they should sell next.

‘He was instrumental over the years in 補助装置ing with the 開始する，打ち上げる of many new 製品s.’

Millions of After Eights are now made each year in Halifax, West Yorkshire, and sent to more than 50 countries.

In keeping with his colourful character Mr Sollitt decorated his house with 500 Santas each year.

He said: ‘I still believe in Father Christmas. When I was young, my dad used to make toys, so I loved Christmas time. Every surface in my house is covered with Father Christmases, snowmen and lights.

?‘I get them from all over the place. I couldn’t live with anybody, there’s no room.’

He also opened his house up for a £1 料金 to raise money for charity.

Mr Sollitt never married or had children. Friends said he was married to his 職業.

After Eight 造幣局s were the higlight of Mr Sollit's career. They sky-ロケット／急騰するd in the market for p osh after-dinner 軽食s and still pervade restaurant （米）棚上げする／（英）提議するs today. The Queen Mother was famously a fan of the iconic 扱う／治療するs