Polly at Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese

It’s a great gloomy pub dating from the mid-17th century with a long roster of past literary regulars (e.g., Twain, Dickens, Conan Doyle). Agatha Christie sets one of her murder mysteries, “The Million Dollar Bond Robbery,”, with the character Hercule Poirot dining here. The pub had an African Grey parrot by the name of ‘Polly’, who presided over the taproom from 1895 to his death at the age of 31.

Polly was known to be a very picky parrot who would be rude to visitors that he (yes, he) didn’t like. He was known for his foul temper and more vicious tongue. The parrot’s antics made him a bit of a local celebrity.

His death came in 1926, when he died of exhaustion, imitating the sound of popping champagne corks over 400 times.

His death was mourned all over London, and his obituary was published in over 200 newspapers. After his death, Polly was stuffed and continues to reside in the taproom more than half a century after his demise.