A cat that lives at a train station has become an unlikely online superstar attracting visitors from across the globe and even his own range of merchandise.
George the cat boasts hundreds of thousands of followers on social media and now has his own Google Maps marker at Stourbridge Junction Railway Station.
The 10-year-old ginger tom has been guarding the platforms in the role of “rat catcher” since his owner emigrated to Spain in 2017.
Station supervisor Ian Tomlinson has adopted George who spends his days patrolling the station or curled up in the ticket office.
Incredibly, fans have traveled thousands of miles just to get a glimpse of him, with some coming from as far away as the United States, Canada and Asia.
Yesterday (Thursday, Aug. 22) devoted George supporters could be found at the station, with some having driven hundreds of miles to see him.
Polly and Tony Armstrong decided to celebrate their 15th wedding anniversary by traveling the 260-mile round trip from Lancaster.
Polly, 75, a former British Aerospace translator, said: “We’re both cat crazy. We see George on Facebook every single day.
“We’ve got three packs of Dreamies and we’re prowling up and down the platform looking for him.
“We once went to a global gathering of crazy cat people in Rome. We went to this cat sanctuary where there were 200 cats. I’m cat crazy.”
Mike Bell, 74, and his wife Iris, 72, traveled from Chipping Campden, Glos., to find the station moggy after seeing him on TV.
Mike said: “We saw it in the news this morning and thought ‘Well we need a day out’ so we thought let’s see George. He’s an attractive cat and very soft.
“It’s probably about 40 miles that we’ve driven. We’ve seen most of Stourbridge just trying to find the station.
“He’s a lovely looking cat, very clean, well looked after. We’ve had horses and cats all our lives. We’ve had them and rehomed somewhere.
“The last one we had was a ginger cat. He just turned up on our doorstep and just stopped. I haven’t had another because I can’t bear to lose them.
“We haven’t been to Stourbridge before. I can’t say that I‘ve ever traveled 40 miles to see a cat before.”
George currently has 66,000 followers on X and 49,000 followers on Facebook where his posts help spread positivity with uplifting messages.
His booming popularity has earned him a marker on Google Maps and his own merchandise line, consisting of George-themed hats, cups, coasters and calendars.
A percentage of the profits from his merchandise is given to local charities.
George aided Stourbridge Junction in being named winner of the “World Cup of Stations” award in 2020 and helped save local ticket offices from closure last year.
Station manager Simone Carter said at the time: “George first found his way into the station back in December 2017 and he’s been the star of the show ever since.
“As well as helping us out in the booking office most days, George has been a fantastic addition to our team who work tirelessly to provide exceptional customer service to our passengers.
“I’m so proud of the team, and our wonderful ambassador George, for their hard work and determination.”
George is the latest in a long tradition of station cats, a tradition dating back to the 19th century where trained cats would hunt down vermin on platforms.
He has his own mouse catcher badge and is said to often leave members of staff dead rodents as ‘gifts’ for their hard work.
Produced in association with SWNS Talker
