Special Sub-Topic: Celebrity Cats Click Here To Play: Celebrity Cats

My name is Marcus. I was given to my actor owner by Elizabeth Taylor but a car crash in a Porsche robbed me of him. Who was he?

James Dean. James Dean (1931-1955) was the most promising young actor of his generation. Good looking and talented, he had everything, but a car crash in his Porsche Spyder on the way to a race took his life. He made only three films, "Giant", "Rebel Without a Cause" and "East of Eden", and his whole acting reputation is based on those, but his early death gave him icon status, which continues.

My name is Foss. My writer and illustrator owner loved me so much that he had me going to sea 'in a beautiful pea green boat'. Who was he?

Edward Lear. Edward Lear (1812-1888) was an illustrator, author and poet, who is probably best known today for nonsense poetry, especially limericks, which he is said to have invented. Foss was the inspiration for his best known work, "The Owl and the Pussycat".

My name is Sheena. My owner was once a famous sportsman, but is now more famous for a legal matter which featured a pair of gloves. Who is he?

O. J. Simpson. O.J. Simpson, former American Football star, was tried for the murder of his ex-wife Nicole and her friend, Ronald Goldman. The trial was possibly the most highly publicised murder trial ever and it ended with Simpson being acquitted. A key defence point was a blood soaked glove alleged to have been worn by Simpson when committing the murders. When asked to try it on it was clearly too tight for him although the prosecution alleged it had shrunk.

My name is Tabby, and my owner was the son of an American President. I was the first ever White House cat. Who was the president?

Abraham Lincoln. Tabby belonged to Thomas (Tad) Lincoln, Abraham Lincoln's son. Lincoln was president from 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He was shot by John Wilkes Booth whilst at Ford's Theatre watching a play. Booth was an actor in the play and shot Lincoln from the stage. Tad Lincoln was the Lincoln's fourth child. He died in Chicago at the age of 18, possibly from tuberculosis, Rutherford B. Hayes owned the first Siamese cat in America, a gift to him from the American Consul in Bangok.

I am Catarina. My owner, who is generally acknowledged to have written the first murder mystery, used me as his inspiration for one of his short stories. Who was he?

Edgar Allan Poe. Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849) wrote "The Murders in the Rue Morgue", which is generally acknowledged to be the first detective novel. Catarina, who went almost everywhere with him and who often sat on his shoulder as he wrote, was his inspiration for "The Black Cat" which, even by Poe's standards, is a very dark tale.

I am Spot, and my famous owner is not actually human, although he strives to be so. To which member of the crew of USS Enterprise do I belong?

Data. Data, played by Brent Spiner, is a sentient android who strives to understand humanity so that he can eventually become more human himself. Part of this humanisation process is having a pet, and Spot appears in several episodes, changing from a male Somali cat to a female tabby in the process, a continuity bloop that is never explained.

Jellylorum is my name, and I was immortalised in a book about 'practical cats' that was turned into a musical. Who was my author owner?

T.S. Eliot. T.S. Eliot (1884-1965) wrote "old Possum's Book of Practical Cats", which Andrew Lloyd Weber used as the basis for "Cats", the musical. Among Eliot's other famous works are "The Waste Land" and "Murder in the Cathedral". He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1948.

Carlyle is my name, and if my paws appear to dance over the ground that will be because I am emulating my owner, although he or she never dressed me up in a top hat. Who was my owner?

Fred Astaire. Fred Astaire (1899-1987) was given Carlyle by Kim Novak. They appeared together in "The Notorious Landlady" and Astaire named the cat after Kim Novak's character in the film. Astaire made 31 films and is most associated with Ginger Rogers. Gene Kelly is reported to have said "The history of dance on film begins with Astaire".

I am Mitsou, and I shared my life with an iconic blonde bombshell actress who married a legendary baseball star. Who was she?

Marilyn Monroe. Marilyn Monroe (1926-1962) started her career as a model. A couple of minor acting roles led to better things and films like "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" and "Some Like It Hot" turned her into one of the best known and glamorous stars of her generation. Her later life was plagued by health and other personal problems and she died of a barbiturate overdose in August 1962. Her death was classed as "probable suicide". She was married to, among others, Joe DiMaggio.

I, White Heather, am a royal cat. I shared my palace with Europe's longest reigning female monarch. Who was my owner?

Queen Victoria. Queen Victoria (1819-1901) reigned over the United Kingdom for 63 years and 7 months. She had nine children and forty two grandchildren, and through various arranged marriages ended up related to virtually every royal family in Europe. She outlived three of her children and eleven of her grandchildren.