Andrew Lloyd Webber so ’emotionally damaged’ by Cats movie he got a ‘therapy dog’
"I saw it and I just thought, ‘Oh, God, no.'"
Words: Jamie Tabberer; picture: Wiki/Universal Pictures
In some truly catty comments, Andrew Lloyd Webber has revealed he was so horrified by the Cats film that he had to get a “therapy dog.”
The musical theatre icon of course composed the original 1981 musical, based on the 1939 poetry collection Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats by T. S. Eliot.
It was last adapted for the silver screen in 2019, in a movie starring Taylor Swift, Judi Dench and Ian McKellen – but due to dodgy visuals, it was savaged by sharp-clawed critics.
“Off-the-scale wrong”
Speaking in a recent interview with Variety, Phantom of the Opera creator Lloyd Webber said: “Cats was off-the-scale all wrong. There wasn’t really any understanding of why the music ticked at all. I saw it and I just thought: ‘Oh, God, no.’ It was the first time in my 70-odd years on this planet that I went out and bought a dog. So the one good thing to come out of it is my little Havanese puppy.”
Speaking of plans to fly to New York City, the 73-year-old added: “I wrote off and said I needed him with me at all times because I’m emotionally damaged and I must have this therapy dog.
“The airline wrote back and said: ‘Can you prove that you really need him?’ And I said: ‘Yes, just see what Hollywood did to my musical Cats.’ Then the approval came back with a note saying: ‘No doctor’s report required.’”
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