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TGIS: Thank God It's Schadenfreude! (179)

This week's joy in the misfortune of others comes courtesy of Reuters (from Monday, August 4; link good at time of posting):

Celebrity chef Antony Worrall Thompson has apologized after accidentally recommending a potentially deadly plant in organic salads.

The chef and TV presenter said in a magazine article that the weed henbane, also known as stinking nightshade, made an excellent addition to summertime meals.

. . . .

Henbane, a close relative of deadly nightshade, was used by Dr Crippen to kill his wife in 1910, and is thought to have been the main ingredient in the poison Romeo took in Shakespeare's play "Romeo and Juliet."

The chef had intended to refer to fat hen, a weed rich in vitamin C, that is edible, media reports said.

. . . .

Worrall Thompson was reported in the media as saying the confusion had been "a bit embarrassing."

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Full post as published by Infamy or Praise on August 08, 2008 (boomark / email).