The Wise Old Bird is the leader of the Bird People of Brontitall. He does not like saying the word "shoe", as he and the bird people consider it unspeakable. The Bird People live in the right ear of a fifteen-mile-high statue of Arthur Dent, constructed by their ancestors.
The "wise old bird" is a phrase which features in the nursery rhyme The Wise Old Owl
- The wise old owl lived in an oak;
- The more he saw the less he spoke;
- The less he spoke the more he heard.
- Why can't we all be like that wise old bird?
The Wise Old Bird appeared in fit the tenth of the radio series. He was voiced by John Le Mesurier who was originally intended to play the character of Slartibartfast.
Read more about this topic: Zarniwoop Vann Harl
Famous quotes containing the words wise and/or bird:
“Three wise men of Gotham
Went to sea in a bowl;
If the bowl had been stronger,
My story would have been longer.”
—Mother Goose (fl. 17th–18th century. Three wise men of Gotham (l. 1–4)
“What bird so sings, yet so does wail?
O, ‘tis the ravished nightingale!
“Jug, jug, jug, jug, tereu,” she cries,
And still her woes at midnight rise.
Brave prick-song! who is’t now we hear?
None but the lark so shrill and clear;”
—John Lyly (1553–1606)