Monday, August 04, 2008

Henbane? Fat Hen? Well it has Hen in it.....

The celebrity Chef Antony Worall Thompson made a bit of a boo boo in an interview with Healthy & Organic Living magazine. In the interview (about watercress and other wild foods) he said that the weed henbane was "great in salads".

Henbane - Hyoscyamus niger - has sticky serrated leaves, yellow, funnel-shaped flowers and a stale scent.The name is of Anglo-Saxon origin (it means killer of hens) and can cause hallucinations, drowsiness and disorientation in humans. Large quantities can cause a loss of consciousness, seizures, trembling of the limbs and, in certain cases, death.

Worall Thompson meant to recommend a wild herb called fat hen. He told BBC that the mix-up was
embarrassing - but one of those genuine mistakes
.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Another nail in his professional coffin - with any luck.

KAZ said...

Almost worth trying it so that we can sue him for huge amounts of dosh.

oldcrow61 said...

Good heavens, hope no one ate the stuff before learning that guy was wrong.

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