Julia and Arturo: Why my parrot and I didn't talk for 40 years

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Julia Hinshaw-Ryberg lives in Sweden and is known for occasionally riding the Stockholm metro with her beloved Amazonian parrot Arturo on her shoulder. Julia and Arturo have been in each other’s lives for almost 60 years – she was 14 years old and he was a baby when he was given to her as a Christmas present in 1968. It was instant affection and over the next few years, Julia and Arturo became inseparable. Arturo wasn’t a mere pet – he was family, adored by everyone including Julia’s husband Mats. So after Julia gave birth to her first baby, it was a huge shock when Arturo reacted with unexpected violence. Arturo and Julia’s once close and loving bond was overcome with jealousy, suspicion and fear. Their relationship broke down and Mats became the only person Arturo could safely be around. But 40 years later, it was time for a second chance. Reporter Tim Mansel went to meet Julia, Mats and Arturo to hear a unique story of love, loyalty and reconciliation. Anna Kharzeeva was running a small cooking school in Moscow when she decided to cook her way through a Soviet relic. It was her babushka Elena’s treasured copy of The Book of Tasty and Healthy Food, the official – and for decades the only – cookbook in the USSR. Recipes ranged from basic to zany to the impossible, involving prep like stabbing cabbage with a wooden stake, or wrapping buckwheat in blankets. With babushka Elena as her guide, Anna dived into the Soviet Union’s complex culinary past – and her own family’s food history. Presenter: Asya Fouks Producer: Maryam Maruf Get in touch: [email protected] or WhatsApp +44 330 678 2707 (Photo: Collage of two photos: On the right is a recent photo of Julia affectionately looking at Arturo, a yellow naped, green Amazon parrot perching on her fingers. On the left is a childhood photo of Julia from the mid-1960s aged around nine or ten smiling at a different green Amazon parrot perching on her arm. Credit: Tim Mansel / Julia Hinshaw-Ryberg)