Hector the Cat eight of his nine lives due to "ignorance of road safety practices". This was followed by a short instructional film. In subsequent years other characters were introduced in calendars, instructional films, and comic books including Millie, his girlfriend (1973), Uncle Tom (1974), Hector and Millie's three kittens (1975) and his space friend Ding Dong (1982). A study in 1978 found that, although children enjoyed the characters and stories, the material had a number of inadequacies. It stressed that road safety research findings and child development theory would need to be considered for any future development. The character is currently used
101 Uses for a Dead Cat 101 Uses for a Dead Cat 101 Uses for a Dead Cat, by Simon Bond (1947—2011), was a bestselling collection of macabre cartoons. The book was promoted with the tag line, "Since time immemorial mankind has been plagued by the question, 'What do you do with a dead cat?'" It consisted of cartoons depicting the bodies of dead cats being used for various purposes, including anchoring boats, sharpening pencils and holding bottles of wine. First published in the UK in 1981 as "A Hundred and One Uses of a Dead Cat", the collection was eventually republished in 20 countries and