A Street Cat Named Bob

In early spring 2007, James Bowen was recovering from heroin addiction and living in sheltered accommodation in Tottenham, north London, scraping by as a busker, or street musician, in Covent Garden. One cold March evening, he found a ginger tom cat curled up on a doormat in his building's ground-floor corridor. The cat had no collar, a thin coat with bald patches, and was clearly hungry. James's friend and former girlfriend, Belle, warned him against taking the cat. Over the following days, however, the cat remained in the same spot, and the flat's occupant denied owning him. James brought the cat upstairs, fed him, and discovered a large abscess on his rear right leg. That night, the cat followed James to bed and curled up at his feet, offering companionship James had lacked.

James took the cat to the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA), where the vet prescribed antibiotics and confirmed the cat was not microchipped, suggesting he was a street cat. James named him Bob, after a character in the television series Twin Peaks. Bowen reflects on his own troubled past: a rootless childhood between England and Australia, severe bullying, and dropping out of school as a teenager. He left Australia at eighteen, was kicked out by his half-sister in London, lost his passport, began sleeping rough, and developed a heroin addiction. Years of hostels and petty crime followed before he entered rehab, was placed on a methadone program (a regimen using a synthetic opioid to wean people off heroin), and moved into the Tottenham flat.

After Bob was treated and neutered at the Abbey Clinic, James tried to release him back to the streets. The cat refused to leave. Each day James put him outside; each evening Bob was waiting on his doormat. One morning, Bob followed James all the way to the busy Tottenham High Road. When James boarded a bus, Bob leapt on and sat beside him. The conductor asked if the cat was his, and James conceded that he must be (55).

At Covent Garden, Bob transformed James's fortunes. Nearly every passerby smiled, stopped, or asked to photograph the cat. At James's pitch outside the tube station, Bob curled up in the open guitar case and attracted donations before James played a note. By evening, James had earned over sixty-three pounds, more than three times his usual take. Bob joined James most days, and James bought him a harness and lead. On days without Bob, locals asked "Where's the cat today?" (89) rather than engaging with James. Bowen reflects on how Bob changed his relationship with the public: People who had previously dismissed him stopped to talk, effectively re-humanizing him.

Street life brought danger. Rowdy young men once kicked the guitar case with Bob inside, and on another occasion Bob calmly bopped a lunging dog on the nose. James took Bob to the Blue Cross van for microchipping, and filling out the registration forms made him realize he was officially Bob's owner. Around the same time, he found old heroin paraphernalia and disposed of it.

Increasing hostility from authorities drove James to try new pitches. Near Piccadilly Circus, a promotions worker in an inflatable costume startled Bob, who bolted into the crowds. After a frantic search, James found him in a clothing shop and bought a belt clip to keep Bob permanently attached to him. As Christmas 2007 approached, admirers showered Bob with knitted scarves, a waistcoat, and a stocking of treats. James celebrated the holiday properly for the first time in years.

By spring 2008, the economic recession and a crackdown on unlicensed performers made busking unsustainable. British Transport Police arrested James on suspicion of abusing a ticket attendant, but a DNA test cleared him. He was instead charged with "touting for reward" (150), or illegal busking, and received a conditional discharge. Recognizing his busking days were over, James approached Sam, the Big Issue coordinator at Covent Garden, about becoming a vendor. The Big Issue is a street magazine that homeless and vulnerably housed people buy wholesale and sell at retail. James registered, was assigned vendor number 683, and was given a pitch outside Covent Garden tube station. With Bob slowing commuters down, he sold six copies in his first hour.

The Big Issue gave James structure but also brought conflict. He sensed established vendors resented his success. One autumn day, Bob fell ill, vomiting bile on the way to work. Rosemary, a veterinary nurse James knew through a friend, suspected Bob had eaten something bad and sent medication free of charge. Bob recovered, but the scare shook James. He decided it was time to come off methadone entirely. Other vendors accused James of "floating," or selling while walking, and his coordinator suspended him temporarily. A drunk vendor named Stan threatened to strangle Bob. James left Covent Garden permanently and secured a pitch outside Angel tube station in Islington.

At Angel, they thrived. The clientele proved generous, and a ticket attendant named Davika brought out water for Bob on hot days. James's doctor prescribed his last dose of methadone and instructed him to return in forty-eight hours for his first dose of Subutex, a medication to complete the transition to sobriety. The intervening days were agonizing: sweating, migraines, hallucinations, and involuntary spasms. Bob stayed by James's side, snuggling close and licking his face. After an excruciating second night, James received his first Subutex dose. The transformation was immediate: Colors seemed brighter and sounds crisper.

In November 2008, James's mother in Tasmania, Australia, offered to pay for his flights to visit over Christmas. Belle volunteered to look after Bob. In Tasmania, James and his mother reconnected over several weeks. He told her the truth about his years of homelessness and addiction, and they began repairing their relationship. He returned after six weeks feeling renewed. Back home, James caught Bob squatting on the toilet seat, having taught himself to use it by watching James.

One spring evening in 2009, an aggressive Rottweiler slipped its lead near Angel station and charged at James and Bob. James wrestled the dog, but Bob fled. James searched the surrounding streets; witnesses reported seeing a ginger cat running toward Camden Passage and the main road, but James could not find Bob. Terrified that losing Bob meant losing his reason to stay clean, he walked toward Belle's flat and experienced an overwhelming craving for drugs. At Belle's building, he spotted a familiar silhouette in the shadows: Bob, who had navigated to the one other home he knew. Inside Belle's flat, a roommate offered James something implicitly stronger than a drink, but James declined, resolving that Bob was all he needed.

Shortly after, Spanish teenagers recognized Bob from YouTube videos. At the library, James discovered films about them with tens of thousands of views, and an American literary agent approached him about writing a book. Bowen reflects on the full scope of Bob's impact: He reconnected with his mother, his Subutex dosage steadily decreased, and he had lived in the same flat for over two and a half years, the longest he had stayed in one place. He acknowledges that the road ahead will not be smooth but expresses confidence that as long as he and Bob are together, things will be fine. Both of them have finally taken the second chance that life offered.