Christopher Smart’s Jubilate Agno

By Frank Key

The poet Christopher Smart — also known as "Kit Smart", "Kitty Smart", "Jack Smart" and, on occasion, "Mrs Mary Midnight" — was a well known figure in 18th-century London. Nowadays he is perhaps best known for considering his cat Jeoffry. Writer and broadcaster Frank Key looks at Smart's weird and wonderful Jubilate Agno. more

Cat Pianos, Sound-Houses, and Other Imaginary Musical Instruments

By Thomas Patteson and Deirdre Loughridge

Deirdre Loughridge and Thomas Patteson, curators of the Museum of Imaginary Musical Instruments, explore the wonderful history of made-up musical contraptions, including a piano comprised of yelping cats and Francis Bacon's 17th-century vision of experimental sound manipulation. more

Gottfried Mind, The Raphael of Cats

By Kirsten Tambling

Labelled a “cretin” and “imbecile” in his lifetime, the Swiss artist Gottfried Mind had profound talents when it came to drafting the feline form. Kirsten Tambling reconstructs the biography of this elusive figure, whose savant-like qualities inspired later French Realists, early psychiatric theorists, and Romantic visions of the artist as outsider. more

The Cat’s Meat Man: Feeding Felines in Victorian London

By Kathryn Hughes

As cats evolved from feral ratters into beloved Victorian companions, a nascent pet-food economy arose on the carts of so-called “cat’s meat men”. Kathryn Hughes explores the life and times of these itinerant offal vendors, their intersection with a victim of Jack the Ripper, and a feast held in the meat men’s honor, chaired by none other than Louis Wain. more