Vichyssoise – a cold potato soup – was invented by Louis XV of France – he was so worried about being poisoned that he had a number of his servants taste his food – so by the time his soup arrived it was cold, yet he liked it so much that from then on he always ate it cold

Worth their weight in gold – during the Alaskan Klondike gold rush (1897-1898) potatoes were practically worth their weight in gold – they were so valued for their vitamin C that miners traded gold for potatoes

Crisps – or Potato Chips as they are called in America – were invented at Saratoga Springs, New York in 1853. Commodore Vanderbilt complained to his steward that he made his chips too thick – the steward was alittle put out and so sliced some potatoes as thinly as he could and dropped them in boiling grease before serving them. Needless to say they were well received!

Vodka was first made from potatoes in Poland around the turn of the 20th century. Previously made from wheat, the cost of making vodka was halved. It takes 5kg of potatoes to produce one litre of vodka

In olden times potatoes were reputed to be a powerful aphrodisiac – in Shakespeare's time potatoes were labeled as "Apples of Love"

One out of every four British potatoes are made into chips – that’s about 1.5 million tones every year - WOW

Mr Potato Head (born in 1952 in Hasbro) was inspired by the potato … what more can I say … potatoes are a classic!!