Witness History
Witness History
How cat's eyes were invented
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November 25, 2022
9 minutes
Available for over a year
In 1934, the late Percy Shaw almost crashed while driving home from the pub on a foggy night in West Yorkshire, in England.
He was saved when his headlights were reflected in the eyes of a cat and it gave him a brilliant idea.
He invented reflective studs for the road and called them cat’s eyes.
Rachel Naylor speaks to Percy's great-niece, Glenda Shaw.
(Photo: Percy Shaw holding one of his cat's eyes, outside his factory in Halifax, England, in 1958. Credit: Getty Images)