While we now have a dog (who thinks she’s a cat), we were always cat people. I don’t really remember Blondie or Dodgy but I was certainly aware of them as early family cats. Smokey was the first cat that was a memorable presence in my life. A particular episode sticks in my mind when he climbed up the back of an armchair when we lived at the Leys – having reached the top he carried on climbing which meant sinking his claws into Kenneth’s head. I believe that Kenneth was not a huge fan of cats and this did not improve their reputation with him. Cromwell and Brandy followed Smokey after we had moved to the Cottage – they looked very similar and were completely inseparable although entirely unrelated. For this collection, the lineup is (will be) completed by Oberon and Ocelot who were never overtly dependent on each other but also were never far apart.
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