Now here’s an example of the weird things that human beings hold onto as significant and even make sacred by placing them in churches, temples, tabernacles and mosques.

The remains of the wee dog that played Greyfriars Bobby in the famous 1961 Disney movie are in this casket, which is now on display in Greyfriars Kirk (Church) in Edinburgh, Scotland. Churches are into making a quick buck from secular gawkers these days because visiting devoutists are dwindling.

The original book called ‘Greyfriars Bobby’ was in Gran’s bookshelf in the hall outside the bathroom. It wasn’t a large bookshelf because my mother’s family were not readers, unlike my father, who filled our house with bookshelves of delights for me when I was older. I never saw Mum read an actual book, even though she did a lot of writing.

The bookshelf filled the hall with the musty bibliosma of old books. There were ‘Girls’ Annuals’ and Enid Blyton books, which I could never take to, ‘What Katy Did’ books which I sort of took to and an amazing pop-up book, repaired with sticky tape that featured Pegasus, the flying horse. But I remember G.B., which was a hardcover with a wee white dog in a lonely, foggy street on the front and softly yellowing pages inside, specifically because it made me cry when I read it, as did ‘Black Beauty’, the first chapter book I ever read. There is something about books written in the point-of-view of animals that tweaks the heartstrings. It was a true story too.

I told my Aunty Bay that one day I would write books that make people cry because they are the best sort and she wrung her hands and flung her head back with dismay. I loved that the author was Eleanor something … like my Aunty Eleanor. I also loved the Scots dialogues and enjoyed inserting Scottish words from the novel into the stories I wrote at school.

To be honest, I remember the story in far more detail than I remember what I did yesterday, but I bet most people going to Edinburgh would not know the story and would just look at the statue and maybe rub Bobby’s nose for luck. What is it, by the way, with rubbing body parts of brass statues? It’s a worldwide ‘thing’.

The Story:

Bobby, a sparky silver-haired Skye terrier, adopted lonely shepherd, Auld Jock, for his master, even though Auld Jock had not paid for him, and the two became inseparable. When Jock was dismissed by the farmer, he tried to find work in the city, but sank into poverty and died, having suffered one cold winter too many. The farmer tried to reclaim Bobby as a pet for his daughter but the little dog remained faithful only to Auld Jock, guarding his master’s grave in Greyfriars Kirkyard in the heart of Edinburgh’s old town. By day, he played with the local orphans and ate at a nearby tavern but, in spite of anything even the Lord Provost himself could do, Bobby returned each night to sleep by his master. Bobby’s devotion changed the lives of those around him and ultimately the conditions of the poor in Edinburgh.

I was not that fussed on the movie, as often happens after you read a good book.The wee ‘actor’ dog in the movie was also called Bobby – although his original name was Tam. Bobby died in 1974 and a funeral was held for him in the Scottish Borders. His grave was marked by a headstone and a replica of the Greyfriars Bobby statue in Edinburgh.

By 2008, the site of the grave was lost. In 2020, the new landowner, John Wilson, was granted permission to build houses on the site. When it was brought to his attention that Bobby was still buried there somewhere, he put his development on hold to allow a search for the lost grave.

On 7 January 2023, after 18 months of searching, Bobby’s remains were finally found. And they have been reverently placed in the kirk. It is not even the real Greyfriars Bobby. The statue in the fountain outside was actually made using the real Bobby as a model. The real Bobby died in 1872 and is buried OUTSIDE the kirk, but near his owner.

The casket is made from a cherry tree that grew in Greyfriars Kirkyard. I think we have here an example of ironic deification?

Another canine statue which you may spot in Greyfriars Kirkyard is that of ‘Bum’. He lived a similar life trajectory to that of Bobby (and Red Dog and Hachiko and Fido and Shep …) but in San Diego, California. Edinburgh and San Diego swapped replica statues.