Latest Poppy Stories

CHAPPAQUA, N.Y., Nov. 8, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Barbara Elizabeth Walsh brings to life the story of World War I humanitarian Moina Belle Michael in The Poppy Lady (Calkins Creek Books), and a portion of proceeds will go to support the National Military Family Association's Operation Purple®. The title comes from the nickname Moina earned working for more than 25 years to establish the poppy as a universal tribute to U.S. war veterans. In this book, illustrated by Layne Johnson, Walsh...

Scientists studying opium poppies say that they have pinpointed the genes responsible for producing a compound which can be used as a cough suppressant and cancer-fighting agent. According to Reuters reporter Ben Hirschler, researchers at the University of York and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) located a cluster of 10 genes which they claim are responsible for the creation of noscapine within the poppies. Noscapine has been used for many years to fight coughs, and recent studies have shown that...

PHILADELPHIA, Oct. 24, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- 24-hour preschool television channel Sprout will debut the new, animated preschool series Poppy Cat on Monday, November 7 at 7:00 p.m. ET, during the season premiere of Sprout's signature, original bedtime block, The Good Night Show. Airing exclusively on Sprout in the U.S., Poppy Cat is produced by Coolabi Productions. To view the multimedia assets associated with this release, go to: http://multivu.prnewswire.com/mnr/sprout/48462/ (Photo:...

LONDON, June 24, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Coventry Building Society has enhanced its award-winning partnership with The Royal British Legion by launching Poppy Online Saver, a market-leading internet savings account [http://www.coventrybuildingsociety.co.uk/savings-and-investments/home.aspx . Poppy Online Saver is an easy access internet savings account [http://www.coventrybuildingsociety.co.uk/savings-and-investments/easy-access/Poppy/Poppy.aspx ] that pays 3.10% AER....

University of Calgary researchers discover codeine and morphine genesResearchers at the University of Calgary have discovered the unique genes that allow the opium poppy to make codeine and morphine, thus opening doors to alternate methods of producing these effective painkillers either by manufacturing them in a lab or controlling the production of these compounds in the plant."The enzymes encoded by these two genes have eluded plant biochemists for a half-century," says Peter...

An official on Australia's Tasmania island says wallabies have been wandering into poppy fields and getting high as a kite from eating the plants. Tasmanian Attorney-General Lara Giddings told a parliamentary budget estimates committee in Hobart Tasmania is facing an increasing problem with wallabies going after their next fix, The Times of London Web site reported Thursday. The one interesting bit I found recently in one of my briefs on the poppy industry was that we have a problem with...

By Manohla Dargis Happy-Go-Lucky Directed by Mike Leigh (Britain) * Reviewed by Manohla Dargis * If you know the British filmmaker Mike Leigh's work - early and later titles like "Bleak Moments,""Naked" and "Vera Drake" - you may find yourself watching his most recent movie, "Happy-Go-Lucky," with mounting unease, a tinge of dread. Despite the extraordinary human parade that has passed in front of his lens, laughing and raging, yearning for love and asking for cuddles, Leigh has never...

By Harlan Jacobson TORONTO -- British writer/director Mike Leigh has made films about ordinary working-class families coping with bulimia, abortion, interracial adoption, Gilbert & Sullivan and all sorts of ordinary madness. Almost all of Leigh's 17 movies, 20 plays and many TV shows have driven right into the heart of family secrets and laid it all out on the table to let everyone start healing. But no dramatic moment is safe from Leigh's sense of fun -- the same way real families...

By Brian Reade (1) MICK Jagger reportedly dating Molly Miller Mundy. Has he finally regressed partner-wise, from woman to wild child to nursery rhyme? (2) ANYONE else feel really sorry for bank robbers right now? (3) JAMIE Oliver praying a brother is on the way for daughters Poppy Honey and Daisy Boo. Can I also pray that if young Tulip Sugarplum is sent to an all-boys' school, the playground's not as brutal as the one I went to? (4) MICHAEL Parkinson releasing the "highlights" of four...

By CROOT, James WILD CHILD (M) Directed by Nick Moore * * Reviewed by James Croot -------------------- Teenage troublemaker Poppy Moore (Emma Roberts) still hasn't got over the death of her mother five years ago. However, recently her bad behaviour has reached new lows. When her Dad's (Aidan Quinn) girlfriend prepares to move into their Malibu home, Poppy hijacks and then trashes her stuff. But she might have gone too far. Her normally tolerant father packs her off to a British boarding...