REAL-LIFE MOG WHO SOLD FOUR MILLION BOOKS
| Date | 08 January 2021 |
| Published date | 08 January 2021 |
| Publication title | Express, The/The Express on Sunday |
"She was an intelligent cat," Judith's son Matthew Kneale says about their childhood pet. "She was a bit sharper than in the stories. We had two other cats and Mog was much cleverer than them."
Matthew, now an author himself, was only four when the moggy arrived at the family home in Barnes, south-west London, which he shared with Judith, his father Nigel Kneale, and older sister Tacy.
The kitten Judith brought home turned out to be remarkably forgiving, never scratching or biting the boisterous children, and rarely meowing, preferring to rely on "visual effects" to make her wishes known - giving a look that said "see what I have to put up with?".
"I distinctly remember being the one who held Mog completely the wrong way up and she was tolerant of this," says Matthew. "She wasn't pleased but saw me as a useless kitten person, so I didn't get scratched, even though I thoroughly deserved it."
At the time of the kitten's arrival, Judith, who went on to publish more than 30 children's books during an incredible 50-year career, was still some way away from publishing her evergreen 1968 debut, The Tiger Who Came to Tea.
Mog the Forgetful Cat, the first book in the feline series, would not follow until 1970. But the mischievous real Mog, whose literary namesake was described as "kindly in a crotchety sort of way", quickly found a place in her owners' hearts.
"We were always talking about her, she was probably our main interest really," Matthew says. That love would, in turn, be felt by the nation's children. By the time of Judith's death in May 2019, aged 95, her fidgety feline was one of the best-known cats in publishing history. A new story, Mog's Birthday, was approved by Judith shortly before her passing and published at the end of last year to celebrate Mog's 50th anniversary.
So just what is it about Mog that children of all ages love? Matthew puts it down to her staying true to her feline nature.
"The books are unlike a lot of children's stories involving animals, which are really people with fur, whereas Mog is based on the real behaviour of a cat," he says.
J
UDITH was an expert at interweaving the common concerns of children with the thoughts running wild through Mog's head. "Small children...
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