Churchill's parrot still swearing

[jeff]

On a lighter note from politics, at:

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/allnews...l&siteid=50143

F*** THE NAZIS, SAYS CHURCHILL'S PARROT

Jan 19 2004

EXCLUSIVE

By Bill Borrows


SHE WAS at Winston Churchill's side during Britain's darkest hour. And now Charlie the parrot is 104 years old...and still cursing the Nazis.

Her favourite sayings were "F*** Hitler" and "F*** the Nazis". And even today, 39 years after the great man's death, she can still be coaxed into repeating them with that unmistakable Churchillian inflection.

Many an admiral or peer of the realm was shocked by the tirade from the bird's cage during crisis meetings with the PM.

But it always brought a smile to the war leader's face.

Churchill bought Charlie - giving him a boy's name despite the fact she was female - in 1937.

She took pride of place in a bizarre menagerie of pets including lambs, pigs, cattle, swans and, at one point, a leopard.

He immediately began to teach her to swear - particularly in company - and she is keeping up the tradition today.

The blue and gold macaw is believed to be Britain's oldest bird.

The title was previously thought to belong to 80-year-old Cokky the cockatoo.

But it can be proved Charlie is at least 104 and was born in the 19th century.

Peter Oram bought her for his pet shop after Churchill died in 1965. But he was forced to move her into his home after she kept swearing at children.

For the last 12 years, she has lived at Mr Oram's garden centre in Reigate, Surrey.

Centre worker Sylvia Martin said: "If truth be told, Charlie is looking a little scruffy but she is very popular with the public. We are all very attached to her."

James Humes, an expert on the late PM, said: "Churchill may no longer be with us but that spirit and those words of defiance and resolve continue."

Charlie's story is in this month's Jack Magazine, on sale Thursday

[Thomas]

Lol. Cool parrot!

[The0ne]

hahah, that's great!! That would be a great parrot for parties. . .

[Strytllr]

That's amazing to me... I was not aware of any bird species who COULD live to that age...

wow.

[Strytllr]

and, apparently authorities don't believe this wild-parrot story. ;>

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/3414323.stm

but, yes, Blue and Gold Macaws live anywhere from 35-100 years, according to the website "House of Parrots". Remarkable.

[Army Fencer]

Eh.. It doesn't matter whose bird it was, Hitler deserves the tirades anyway.

[nahouw]

Parrots have a very, very long lifespan -- that is why most people who own parrots usually have it written in their wills who they want the parrot to be taken care of by after their death, because the parrot will always outlive them.

Parrots are very intelligent, and they are taught to talk by hearing and repetition -- mimicing what they hear. So, since the parrot says this all the time, it means that this is what Churchill was saying constantly -- very interesting indeed!! And perhaps why he always got a chuckle out of it!!

Now that I just saw the article that Strytllr referenced, it would make sense that after his death that he would want the bird rendered back to the person he bought it from -- either in advance of his death by returning it, or by his will, he could trust that this is the person that would take the best care of her.

A budgerigar is the technical term for a parakeet. I have had several parakeets, and it is difficult, though not unknown, for them to talk. For an animal lover like Churchill, it would make sense for him to progress in bird ownership and have a parrot. With a parrot, which has better language skills than a budgerigar, you have a better relationship with the animal. Perhaps the family was not comfortable with birds -- many people are afraid of them. And, then after his death, they would have to care for the parrot, and even though any bird is low maintenance compared to the companionship needs of a dog, birds do have a high need of maintenance in regards to cage cleanliness.

The way that I read the BBC article is that after his death, nobody in the family wanted to care for birds, and just wanted them collected. I think that the family is reacting to the fact that what the parrot is saying and how it reflects on Churchill's memory.

[PeterGustafsson]

Hi!

Originally posted by Strytllr
That's amazing to me... I was not aware of any bird species who COULD live to that age...

wow.

104 - bah!

When the eye biochemistry of some legally hunted greenland whales was investigated, it was found that most of them were 20-60 years old when killed, but four big bulls stood out. Their estimated ages were 113, 134, 176, and 211 years. Considering that this is only a small sample, and that they did not seem decrepit by old age when they were killed, is is relatively safe to say that there are living greenland whales older than the USA, and there may be some still swimming which are pushing 300. Imagine swimming around off the north coast of Alaska for 2 centuries!

More can be read here:
http://www.sciencenews.org/20001014/bob2.asp

Have a nice time!

Peter Gustafsson

[jeff]

Originally posted by nahouw
I think that the family is reacting to the fact that what the parrot is saying and how it reflects on Churchill's memory.

Maybe the family didn't want to have a foul-mouthed parrot hanging around the house, no matter how patriotic the cursing!

[Army Fencer]

Originally posted by jeff
Maybe the family didn't want to have a foul-mouthed parrot hanging around the house, no matter how patriotic the cursing!

Eh, they'd get exposed to it eventually. Might as well have a patriotic twist!