Ice cream men have been cashing in on this year's endless procession of heatwaves by charging up to £7 for classic 99s. In Hyde Park, they run six permanent stations selling coffees, cakes, sandwiches and soft drinks, alongside ice cream - and three vintage ice cream trucks during the summer. The mother said: 'We're from Canada and we get ice cream a lot, but it seems a little more expensive here. The origins of the name are uncertain but Cadbury's launched a shorter version of its Flake bar in 1930 called a 'Flake 99' for the ice cream trade. Another theory is that the Italian monarchy had an elite royal guard of 99 soldiers, making '99' a term for something of exceptional quality - and the ice cream was therefore named the 'Flake 99' or '99 Flake' to appeal to Italian ice cream vendors.