I have written before about the two marketing concepts, 'negative marketing' and 'Choco Rice Krispies Marketing', which are basically ways to bring attention to things that we don't need to see advertisements for.

Such a story made it into the papers today, which usually heralds a low news week - HP Sauce is changing the recipe!

No it isn't, but that is what I thought was happening from the hysteria surrounding this. All they are doing is lowering the salt content.

I have a vested interest in this, as I have brown sauce (it has to be HP, I'm with Frank Bruno on this) with most meals. It is even something that works in cooking; my secret pasta recipe, corned beef hash, stew, the list goes on. I pour it over mashed potato, then fold and repeat. Obviously it gets used with chips, cobs and fry ups.

The negative marketing element will work a treat with a campaign such as this, as the "It's political correctness gone mad" brigade rush out to stockpile bottles of 'old' HP Sauce.

I doubt anyone will even tell the difference.

HP Sauce was created (before it was named as such) in Nottingham by a grocer called Frederick Gibson Garton. I have no other knowledge of Garton, apart from that he sold out for £150, (it was a lot of money then). With my interests in local history, maybe there is information available. The question is, is a grocer who created the best of the bunch when it comes to sauce an interesting enough topic for research?