Friday's Fascinating Flower Facts

While the poppy is usually associated with November, and Remembrance, it actually flowers now, as our wonderful pictures from a peninsula farmer's field shows so vividly. Poppies grew so readily on battlegrounds due to the concrete left behind but as the lime disappeared into the soil, so the poppies faded away.

Morphine is created from the milky latex in the seed head of the opium poppy and due to the opiate traces that can be found in poppy seeds, and because of the potential for the seeds to be used to grow opium poppies, they are banned as a food ingredient in China, Taiwan and Singapore. These trace amounts of opiate also mean that eating even a small amount of food containing poppy seed can lead to a false positive on drugs tests. In the 19th century, British horticulturalists who were incentivised by the booming opium trade attempted to establish an opium poppy crop in the UK. Unfortunately for them, it was eaten by a plague of hares that felt no pain.

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Today's Felixstowe sunrise: 04:35

Today's Felixstowe sunset: 21:14

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Tide Times

01:01 3.7m

06:41 0.73m

13:18 3.77m

19:04 0.64m

Floodgates open

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Weather:

A dry day ahead, with variable cloud cover and some sunshine. Feeling warm or very warm in more prolonged sunshine. Sometimes breezy. Maximum Temperature 25c, low of 15c.

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Orwell Bridge:

Open

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Joke of the day:

A blind man walks into the bakery and asks for eight poppy seed breads. While the baker gathers them for him, he asks: are you expecting any visitors? No, replies the blind man. But I'm going on holiday, and they have such lovely stories written on them.

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Live travel updates: 

Train times and traffic hold ups

Felixstowe - Harwich - Shotley Ferry timetable (from Monday, March 29)

Felixstowe-Bawdsey ferry will run from:

Easter weekend until April 30: 10.00 - 17.00 weekends only.

Wave to hail the ferryman, or call 07709 411 511. Go here for website

Bus services:

Check here for 77 service Monday to Friday timetableLive travel updates: 

Check here for 75 service Monday to Friday timetable

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Today's Post Office Openings:

Bent Hill, Wolsey Garden – 10.30 – 12.30

Felixstowe, Hamilton Road - 09.00 – 15.00

Old Felixstowe, High Road, East – 09.00-17.30

Walton High Street – 08.15 – 17.30

Trimley High Road – 06.00 – 22.00

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Today's supermarket shop openings:

Co-op Hamilton Road – 07.00-21.00

Co-op Wadgate Road – 06.00-23.00

Co-op High Road West - 07.00-23.00

Co-op King Street – 06.00-23.00

Co-op Walton High Street 06.00-23.00

Morrison's – 07.00 – 21.00 (petrol 08.00-22.00)

Tesco metro – 07.00-22.00

Sainsbury's Warren Heath – 08.00-22.00

Lidl Langer Road: 08.00 – 21.00

Lidl Haven exchange: 08.00-21.00

Wear face covering. Respect social distancing rules and treat shop staff with respect.

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This weeks' surgeries and dispensary times:

Grove Medical centre 08.00-18.30 (283197) - Covid vaccinations available by appointment only

Haven Health 08.00-18.30 (670107)

Howard House 09.00-17.00 (282706)

Felixstowe Community Hospital (458820)

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Our daily Breakfast Briefing is proving very popular but we are always striving to improve the experience for you. If you have any suggestions for inclusion please email [email protected]