But with Johnson and Bird very much known quantities upon reaching the NBA, and with each having won a championship ring (Johnson in 1980, Bird in 1981) in their first two years, soon enough the NBA was all over prime time network television.

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They have been colonised by flocks of green ring-necked parakeets, an Indian bird that has mysteriously gone feral in much of south-east Britain.

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Its greatest exponent is Yasuki Hiramatsu, born into a family of metalsmiths, who, through an annealing process, can twist a single length of gold or silver into a ring or necklace enchantingly resembling a minimalist bird's-nest.

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The report was also able to follow the movements of a ring-necked parakeet around London, as the British range of this colourful bird expanded.

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