Jimmy was the pet of Miss Doris Jekyll (1878-1960), originally from Walmer in Kent, who lived on New Street, Henley and worked as a nurse during the First World War.

There is scant information about Doris available online, but she appears to have been from quite a wealthy family. If I am interpreting this website correctly, Doris may have been a distant relative of Gertrude Jekyll, the famous horticulturist and garden designer.

Much of the information about Doris and Jimmy seems to come from the 1985 BBC documentary Animal Crackers. Doris and Jimmy are described as being inseparable, with Jimmy always to be seen draping himself around Doris's shoulders like a scarf.

Doris never married or had children, which may have been why the death of her beloved pet hit her so hard. An article in the Henley Standard mentions that Doris always dressed in black, although whether this was Doris living in a perpetual state of mourning post-Jimmy, or merely a sartorial preference is not clear. The article does describe Doris as 'eccentric' so maybe it possible it was the former!

The inscription on the grave reads:

Jimmy's headstone stands (or rather stood) at the base of a maple tree close to the wall on the north side of Fair Mile, opposite the block of flats called Fairmile Court. Sadly, in June 2025 the tree was found to be riddled with fungus and decay and was felled by the council before it inevitably toppled into the road.

It is something of a mystery why Doris chose this spot for Jimmy's grave, rather than somewhere closer to her home. Did she have to seek permission for such a public monument? Newspaper archives provide me no clues on this. It's possible that Doris wanted the memorial to be seen by as many people as possible, so chose a spot on the main road into town.