Casper ( 1997 – 14 January 2010) was a male

domestic cat The cat (''Felis catus'') is a domestic species of small carnivorous mammal. It is the only domesticated species in the family Felidae and is commonly referred to as the domestic cat or house cat to distinguish it from the wild members o ...

who attracted worldwide media attention in 2009 when it was reported that he was a regular bus commuter in

Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west. Plymouth ...

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is ...

, England. He appeared on

BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broadca ...

, was the subject of a newspaper editorial in ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'', and had a book written about him, '' Casper the Commuting Cat''. Casper died on 14 January 2010 after being hit by a taxi.

Biography

Casper was adopted from an animal rescue centre in

Weymouth, Dorset Weymouth is a seaside town in Dorset, on the English Channel coast of England. Situated on a sheltered bay at the mouth of the River Wey, south of the county town of Dorchester, Weymouth had a population of 53,427 in 2021. It is the third l ...

in 2002 by Susan Finden, a 48-year-old health care worker. He had been at the centre for about ten months and the owners called him Morse, after ''

Inspector Morse Detective Chief Inspector Endeavour Morse, GM, is the eponymous fictional character in the series of detective novels by British author Colin Dexter. On television, he appears in the 33-episode drama series ''Inspector Morse'' (1987–2000), ...

'', a TV program they had been watching when he arrived. But after a few days with him in her Weymouth house, Finden changed his name to Casper, after

Casper the Friendly Ghost Casper the Friendly Ghost is the protagonist of the Famous Studios theatrical animated cartoon series of the same name. He is a pleasant, personable and translucent ghost, but often criticized by his three wicked uncles, the Ghostly Trio. T ...

, because he kept disappearing. She soon realised that he was a very independent and determined cat, and he frequently wandered off. She also discovered that he was not afraid of people or traffic, and seemed to love being around large vehicles. It was not long before she started hearing reports that he was visiting nearby office blocks, doctor's consulting rooms and pharmacies. Fearing for his safety while crossing roads, Finden tried to keep Casper locked indoors, but he always found a way out. In 2006, Finden moved to

, and when she went to work each day she had no idea what Casper did while she was away. It was not until early 2009 that she discovered that he was riding on buses. The drivers told her that he would politely queue along with other passengers at the

bus stop A bus stop is a place where buses stop for passengers to get on and off the bus. The construction of bus stops tends to reflect the level of usage, where stops at busy locations may have shelters, seating, and possibly electronic passenger ...

opposite her house, and when a bus came that he liked, he would get on and jump on his favourite seat. Casper would remain on the bus for its round-trip to the city centre and back to the bus stop opposite his house, where the drivers would let him exit, ensuring that he did not get off at any other stop. When Finden learned of Casper's bus excursions, she contacted the bus company, First Devon & Cornwall, who alerted their drivers to be on the lookout for him. She was touched by how the drivers and passengers went out of their way to accommodate Casper and his unusual behaviour, and wrote a letter to '' The Plymouth Herald'' thanking them for their kindness. Her letter led to ''The Herald'' publishing an article on Casper in April 2009. British

news agencies A news agency is an organization that gathers news reports and sells them to subscribing news organizations, such as newspapers, magazines and radio and television broadcasters. A news agency may also be referred to as a wire service, newswire, ...

picked up ''The Herald'' article, and Casper's story quickly spread nationally, and then internationally. Casper became a celebrity and appeared in newspapers and on websites across the world. He featured on

, who had filmed him boarding a bus. First Devon & Cornwall adorned the side of some of their buses with a huge picture of Casper, and said they had no intention of charging Casper a bus fare. Public-relations manager, Karen Baxter said: "In cat years he's an OAP so he'd get a free bus pass anyway".

Death

On 14 January 2010, Casper was hit by a taxi, whose driver did not stop to help him. He died of his injuries before Finden could get him to a vet. News of the accident spread quickly around the world, with some newspapers calling it a

hit and run In traffic laws, a hit and run or a hit-and-run is the act of causing a traffic collision and not stopping afterwards. It is considered a supplemental crime in most jurisdictions. Additional obligation In many jurisdictions, there may be an ...

. Finden later contacted the taxi company, but could not press charges as British traffic regulations do not make it mandatory for drivers to stop after hitting a cat (although they must stop after hitting a dog). She had Casper

cremated Cremation is a method of final disposition of a dead body through burning. Cremation may serve as a funeral or post-funeral rite and as an alternative to burial. In some countries, including India and Nepal, cremation on an open-air pyre i ...

at a vet's crematorium, but she did not keep his ashes, as she had never kept the ashes of any of her other cats. Plymouth bus drivers and passengers who knew Casper paid tribute to him, and Finden posted a notice at his bus stop: Finden also received condolences from all over the world, including Australia, Argentina, Indonesia and the United States. ''

'' wrote in an

editorial An editorial, or leading article (UK) or leader (UK) is an article written by the senior editorial people or publisher of a newspaper, magazine, or any other written document, often unsigned. Australian and major United States newspapers, suc ...

entitled "In praise of... Casper the commuting cat": "Casper had a thing about HGVs, but otherwise little road sense. That could have been his undoing. But, all things considered, what a ride it was."

Legacy

After Casper's death in January 2010, Susan Finden wrote a book called '' Casper the Commuting Cat'' with the help of

ghostwriter A ghostwriter is hired to write literary or journalistic works, speeches, or other texts that are officially credited to another person as the author. Celebrities, executives, participants in timely news stories, and political leaders often h ...

Linda Watson-Brown. It describes Casper's exploits, his rise to fame, and his untimely death. The book was first published in the United Kingdom by Simon & Schuster UK in August 2010, and was later translated into six other languages. In October 2010 '' The Plymouth Herald'' reported that a full-length

feature film A feature film or feature-length film is a narrative film (motion picture or "movie") with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole presentation in a commercial entertainment program. The term ''feature film'' originall ...

on Casper's story is being considered, and that a British film director is said to be looking into the story. ''The Herald'' said that a production company is believed to be arranging funding, and that two "high-profile actresses" have been identified to play the role of Finden.

Notes

References

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