With profits worth considering?

This caught our eye: Wesleyan has launched two new with-profits funds, FT Adviser has reported. These used to be all the rage back in the nineties and early noughties so a few questions: why did they fall out of favour, is smoothing out returns an underused strategy and would you recommend a with profits fund to your clients (assuming they're the right fit)? Any additional thoughts on the pros and cons of with profits as an investment vehicle, and the role they can play in a portfolio, send them across by 09:00 tomorrow as we'll be writing this article first thing.