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Stevenage railway cat Nala 'breaks down barriers' at rush hour

Adventures of Nala Nala the cat sitting on a ticket gateAdventures of Nala
Nala knows when she will get the most fuss from commuters

A cat that made a busy railway station its second home has been delighting commuters with its adventures.

Ginger cat Nala has been photographed hundreds of times at Stevenage station, usually perched on a ticket gate.

Owner Natasha Ambler set up a Facebook group where hundreds of people have posted photos of their encounters.

She said Nala loved the attention and headed for the station both morning and evening as "she knows what time the commuters will be there".

The station manager said she was "breaking down barriers" and creating a community for local passengers.

The cat is four years old and although she lives close to the station - and has a loving home - she is very much an outdoors cat, Miss Ambler said.

Adventures of Nala Nala the cat sitting on a ticket gateAdventures of Nala
Nala has been fitted with tags to tell people she is not a lost cat

Nala has always been adventurous, and is fitted with a GPS tracking device, so her humans have been able to see how widely she travels.

Miss Ambler told how she "mainly visits the railway station and the next door leisure park".

"Once she spent most of the night in a cinema and a friend had to go and bring her home," Miss Ambler said.

Adventures of Nala Nala sitting on a pile of newspapersAdventures of Nala
It is hard to pick up your free paper when it has become a cat bed...

Nala wears a collar bearing her name and the details of her owners, but Miss Ambler said at one point she was receiving "about 20 calls a day from people asking if our cat was lost".

"We had to get a second tag made up to tell people 'she's not lost'."

Asked if she was concerned about her cat's escapades, Miss Ambler said: "Not at all, she's obviously well-loved and she's very happy doing what she does - I just hope one day she doesn't actually try to get on a train."

Adventures of Nala Nala the cat sitting on a ticket gateAdventures of Nala
She's always on the lookout for the next cuddle from a commuter

Shaun Smith, Great Northern's station manager at Stevenage, is also enamoured with their resident cat.

He commented: "She's breaking down barriers by making people smile and starting cheerful conversations between staff and customers - helping our team and our tenants at the station feel part of the local community, which is rewarding for everyone."

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