Feline Fun is written/compiled by
Patrick Roberts
Copyright © 2003-09 Purr 'n' Fur UK

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The Romping Cat, one of two pubs of that name, is in Bloxwich, near Walsall in the West Midlands region of the UK. It previously had a sign showing a cat holding a beer mug and smoking a cigar or cigarette (see picture), but perhaps that is no longer considered acceptable. It now has this rather splendid Banks' brewery lion.
Picture of the pub
Sign photographed Sep 2005

This cartoon-style Romping Cat is on a small country pub, renowned for its beer, near the village of Bomere Heath, not far from Shrewsbury in Shropshire.
Older sign, 1973, courtesy Inn Sign Society.
Signs photographed Apr 2004

The Fat Cat is a town pub in Chester, the county town of Cheshire, where a settlement dates back at least to Roman times.
Sign photographed Apr 2004

The Cheshire Cat, of Alice in Wonderland fame, is a very well-thought-of pub and hotel on the south-eastern outskirts of Chester, near the village of Christleton. The pub dates from about 1973 and is on the site of the former Christleton Lodge. The former sign (2005) showing Lewis Carroll's Cheshire cat was replaced in 2008 with this ginger beast. Although he's a fine cat, it perhaps isn't quite so authentic.
Picture of the pub
Sign photographed 2008, pub 2005

The Puss in Boots is one of several with that name. This one is on the outskirts of Macclesfield, in Cheshire, on the road coming down the hill into the town from Buxton. The sign has been renewed since we photographed it originally and our picture to the left is of the latest version; but see the older one here.
Picture of the pub
Sign photographed May 2005

Cat with No Tail: since we first posted the sign for this large pub on the outskirts of Douglas, Isle of Man, the pub appears to have been refurbished and the signs have been changed to the attractive painting of a tortoiseshell Manx cat. The previous humorous signs, kindly sent to us by Margaret Hunter, can be seen here.
Picture of the pub
Sign photographed Oct 2005

The Cat and Fiddle, near Wildboarclough, is a well-known pub on the Cheshire/Derbyshire border (actually just in Cheshire), at the summit of the winding road across the moors between Macclesfield and Buxton. It is 1690 feet above sea level and is one of the highest pubs in Britain. The inn sign has been renewed since we first pictured it in 2004, but the older version can still be seen here. A rather nice pictorial panel of a cat with a fiddle can be seen on the front of the pub, and the same panel is clearly visible in a photograph of the inn on a pre-1918 postcard: see the whole card and an enlargement of the panel.
There are several theories as to how the 'Cat and Fiddle' name arose: no one knows the real origin, but see our Notes and Anecdotes for a couple of theories about the derivation of the name.
Picture of the pub
Signs photographed May 2007

This pub, simply called The Cat, is an urban one in Ellesmere Port, a town in north Cheshire. It's interesting that the artist has chosen to represent it by a wild cat rather than a domestic one, but it's a very fine leopard!
Picture of the pub
Sign photographed Jul 2004

The West Midlands seems to be a good area for cat-related pub names. The Cat at Willenhall, between Walsall and Wolverhampton, has undergone a makeover since we first visited in 2004, and these are the new signs. You can see the previous attractive sign here.
Picture of the pub
Sign photographed Jan 2006

This Cat and Fiddle — with a different interpretation of the name — is between Derby and Ilkeston, also in Derbyshire, not far from Kirk Hallam.
Older sign, 1989, courtesy Inn Sign Society.
Picture of the pub
Sign photographed May 2004

This Squinting Cat — also, perhaps surprisingly, not a unique name — is on the outskirts of Mansfield in Nottinghamshire, in Clipstone village.
See older signs from 1995 (a great sign!) and 1985, both courtesy Inn Sign Society.
Sign photographed May 2004

The Old Cat, a pub in the village of Wordsley, near Kingswinford in the Dudley area of the UK West Midlands. Circular signs like this are not so common.
Picture of the pub
Sign photographed Sep 2005

The Cat and Bagpipes is in the North Yorkshire village of East Harlsey, not far from Northallerton. The name probably has nothing to do with animals. In the days of border raids from Scotland into northern England, the skirl of bagpipes often meant 'The Cats are coming!' — 'Cats' being an abbreviation for the old Latin term catphractes, or troops. They wore iron breastplates, a style later adopted by the northern raiders.
Sign photographed Jul 2004

Another West Midlands Cat Inn, only a few miles from Wordsley (above), is this comfortable-looking one from Enville, a village between Stourbridge and Bridgnorth. Curiously, a 300-year-old regulation had long prevented this pub from opening on Sundays. It was only in October 2004 that customers were able to enjoy their first Sunday pint.
Picture of the pub
Signs photographed Jun 2005

The Cat and Cabbage is in central Rotherham, in Yorkshire, but appears to be more of a 'diner' than a traditional pub. No pictorial sign, but a reader of the site says that the name is a reference to the York & Lancaster Regiment's badge, the rose and the tiger. The regiment recruited in Rotherham, Sheffield and Barnsley. A drawing of the badge can be seen at this page, and there's also an image at Regiments.org with regimental history and information.
Sign photographed Jun 2004

The Devonshire Cat is a modern town pub in Sheffield, Yorkshire. There is no pictorial sign, but the cat silhouette is shown on the front windows.
Photographed May 2005

Our second Fat Cat is in Alma Street, Sheffield, Yorkshire, not far from the city centre. Although only a small place, it has won several awards for 'Best Value Pub in Britain' and 'One of Top Five Urban Pubs in Britain'.
Picture of the pub
Sign photographed Jun 2004
Pub photo 2000, courtesy of Dave Milner

The Black Cat is a small, town pub in Bedminster, a district of Bristol, a major city in the south-west of England.
Older sign 1994, courtesy Inn Sign Society.
Picture of the pub
Sign photographed Oct 2004

The Burmese Cat: this name might have derived from a brewery chairman whose wife bred Burmese cats; but the cat on the sign seems to have grown into something rather larger! The pub is in the town of Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire (famous for its pork pies).
Sign photographed Sep 2004

The Pendle Witch is a pub in the village of Sabden, near Clitheroe in the north-western English county of Lancashire. The name derives from the most famous (or infamous) witch trials in England, following which 11 witches were executed in 1612. Sabden is in the area from which the alleged witches came, and Pendle is a nearby hill associated with witchcraft. The sign shows a witch with her 'familiars', including a black cat.
Picture of the pub
Sign photographed May 2009