Character Cat Gallery

New Kitty on the Block

My mother has wanted me to design a new baby card for quite some time.  I've deliberately kept the colours neutral so it could be used for either a boy or a girl, but the model was a young kitten called Reuben who spent just one weekend with me.

Grandpa Henry's Allotment

Henry lived to be almost 18 and was always a rather grumpy cat.  He enjoyed watching gardening programmes on tv.

Freddie the Rambler

Freddie is a very rotund polydactyl cat who has been visiting me for sleepovers for the past few years.  I've no idea who he is or where he comes from.  Although a big softie with me, he tends to bully my other cats and makes himself unpopular.

Happy Birthday Cheeky Charlie!

A neighbour and I used to share Cheeky Charlie and when she relocated, she decided to leave him with me.  He probably has other homes as well but spends much of his time sleeping on my bed.  He is now 6 years old and officially mine.  Charlie is very interested in cars and likes to help me to check the oil level.

Max au Café des Chats

Max belongs to a previous neighbour.  When I first saw him, he was a tiny kitten staring out from the window of the house opposite, and I was immediately struck by his incredible Dali-like moustache.  I just had to have him for a model!  I later became good friends with his owner and was able to get some great photos as he grew up.  He has since relocated to York.

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Old Milkman Jack

Jack was a stray who lived with me for just 9 months up until his death.  He was aged approximately 18.  He was a very elderly gentleman, who had obviously experienced a lot of cruelty in his life.  He asked for nothing except milk and a warm place to sleep.  So accustomed to being beaten, he could never relax enough to become a lap-cat.  Whilst people can treat a helpless animal in this way, how can we have any hope for a better society?

Cat Dracula

Morgan always made a silly face when play-fighting with us and this is what this portrait is based on.  I had great fun painting it and couldn't resist adding a trickle of blood to his fangs.  This picture seems to be a favourite of many visitors and is a best selling Halloween card at Greeting Card Universe.  It also sells well at the Whitby Gothic Festival.

Cleocatra

A number of visitors to my site suggested a Character Cat based on Cleopatra, so here she is!  The sphinx cat is owned by Patricia Kenyon-Luke of York who kindly loaned me some photos.  I initially had trouble with this painting as I was trying to get the cat to sit on a throne.  Then my mum had the inspired idea of a bath of milk - every cat's fantasy!

Yankee Doodle Sam

Samson had many fans and friends in the United States and used to receive a lot of email in his own right.  During his cancer it took me as much as three hours a day to read and reply to it all.  This painting is especially for all of his American friends and I enjoyed painting it.  It is my second top selling card at Greeting Card Universe.

Chairman Miaow

When my Chinese housemate told me that Mao is the Chinese word for cat, this image immediately sprung to mind.  Bruiser was the natural choice of model as he loved Chinese food, preferably fed to him by chopsticks!

Jet the Miner

My hometown of Chesterfield was a mining town for over 250 years until Thatcher's government destroyed the industry.  The memory of the miner's strike and subsequent pit closures is still a painful one for many people.  Jet was a Yorkshire cat whom I owned during the last years of mining in that area.