A legion of new poppies has sprouted, thanks to some rather dubious rebranding.There’s no denying that all monies raised are in aid of a very worthy cause, but shouldn’t a little more respect be paid to the timelessly understated and universally recognized, bog standard Royal British Legion poppy? Personally, I prefer the traditional paper and plastic version, but…
It all began with the larger-sized, more elaborate blooms – a sort of ‘mine’s bigger than yours’ war of the Poppy-fancying populace. A self-made millionaire (recently sold the limo hire business) might have paid a few extra quid for a car poppy, only to find he’d been outdone by Liverpool’s Poppy Appeal version, which took two men to hold erect. Then Victor Meldrews started wandering around Sainsburys with poppy jute bags, whilst their fragrant wives purchased colourful poppy scarves (now out of stock).
Recent additions to the poppy fold have included designer brooches of the type worn by X-Factor judges and Z-Factor celebrities. The uniquely ornate Kleshna originals have already been replaced with slightly toned down crystal encrusted Buckley poppy brooches, which are said to be ‘attractively boxed’ too.
The executive who wishes to wear his poppy earlier than anyone else may now opt to display one all year round in the form of a poppy golf umbrella, a poppy lanyard… or in extreme cases of OCPD (Obsessive Compulsive Poppy Disorder), perhaps even the British Legion’s 90th Anniversary instant hand sanitizer.
There’s a sculpture for arty types as well – and Poppy Man (Wicker Man’s country garden offspring) has been recreated on a mug – although it appears that this is out of stock too (do poppy collectors know something we don’t?)
Good causes gurus and members of the younger generation may be tempted by the Max Res arm band, or decide to download the 2011 offical Poppy Appeal single – The Soldiers with Robin Gibb, singing I’ve Gotta Get a Message to You.
But, with the exception of the must have (aka out of stock) poppy spoon rest, the ultimate accolade in poptastic cool goes to the Barclays sponsored poppy-clad Boris bike, as modelled by poppylicious Christine Bleakley…
I actually rather like the umbrella I must say! The hand sanitizer is a product too far though…
Regarding the whole poppy thing, I wonder if there’s a danger that we’re reaching a tipping point
I don’t see a problem with introducing new products to expand the market and attract new funds, I quite like the idea of a mug, which is, after all, a little more useful than a poppy (though unfortunately no longer available). As far as a tipping point is concerned, I think we’ve gone over the edge in terms of tastefulness, Worm.
This year I discovered that there’s a Scottish poppy. From http://www.poppyscotland.co.uk:
Why, you ask? An excellent mix of pedantry and parsimony (I make no comment as to how typically Scottish this might be):
Ah, you beat me to it, Gaw! I was just going to mention the Scottish poppy. One of those local peculiarities that reveal whether those who claim to like local peculiarities really do. I like it – and it’s more durable, in my experience, than the England/Wales one, and doesn’t need a pin to fix to your lapel.
You don’t need a pin! Is there no end to the ways the Scots can improve on the English?
I don’t think it’s a Scotland v England thing – can’t afford it to be, since I’m half of both. But the Scottish poppy is better for all that. Didn’t want to derail the thread away from Susan’s eyeopening survey (did you think it had all gone this far? I hadn’t!)
I had no idea there was a Scottish Poppy, Gaw – thanks for letting us know. I’ve a smidgen of Scottish blood, but I think I’ll stick to the British? Legion’s English/Welsh/N Irish version …
Susan, on Monday I put my money in the box outside Sloane Square tube station and was presented with a gorgeous version made of some sort of silky material, not just the petals and leaf but eye too. It also had a cunning green wire stem, which allowed one to wrap it around a button hole. It was altogether rather extravagant. I assumed it was a posh Chelsea thing – I believe you are much more familiar with the locale than me so could you let me know if this is right?
Sorry, I can’t corroborate this, Gaw – perhaps it was something to do with Basia Zarzycka, who has a shop selling silk flowers in Sloane Square… I saw some little children wearing poppies today, which I thought was rather sweet — and a good idea for them to learn about the significance.
So are you still flouncing around the streets in your poseur’s poppy, Gaw? I recall the twisty paper on wire stems from some years ago, I thought they’d been ousted by Health and Safety. I’m not a great fan of those crimply silk creations – in fact I have to confess I rarely wear a poppy (unless it’s on a hat, or a shoe), though I always make a donation. One novel idea is to make your own poppy – eg you can download a pdf knitting pattern for this poppy, with proceeds going to the Poppy Appeal.
Yes, I am and I’m now feeling quite self-conscious. I didn’t mean to make a ‘statement’.
He sa Hullo birds hullo clowds hullo poppies
I bought one the other evening and couldn’t get it to stick at all – I owned it for about an hour. Is that the one with 4 plastic leaves, and a stalk with one tiny offshoot – as I couldn’t fix mine to my jacket.