NOT SO SWEET

Judi Dench Reveals Parrot’s Rude Nickname for Her

The legendary actress said her parrot, Sweetie, uses colorful language.

Judi Dench’s pet parrot has an unexpected moniker for the legendary actress. “We had a long chat just now,” Dench told the Sunday Times of her rescue African grey parrot, who is named Sweetie. The name is ironic, given the way she talks to Dench. “You shouldn’t ask what she says. She says: ‘You’re a sl-t,’ ‘you’re a slag,’” she said. The parrot also has taken an interest in politics. “She has said ‘Boris Johnson’ but she didn’t get that from me,” she added. “She listens to the radio. My God, she’s funny though. She’s very, very funny. Everybody should have a parrot or a myna bird. Their voices are absolutely incredible.” Dench gave the interview to the Sunday Times to mark her 90th birthday on Dec. 9. “It’s just that you get a bit nervous when everybody says 90,” she said. “I don’t want to think of 90 much, I’m going to think about [turning] 29.” Dench added that she felt lucky to be turning 90 after the recent deaths of her friends and fellow actresses Barbara Leigh-Hunt and Maggie Smith. “I’m able to at least get from A to B and walk about and, golly, I’ve got a great deal to be grateful for.”