Larry the cat, the UK’s most famous feline, celebrates 15 years on Sunday as the country’s chief mouser, patrolling the corridors of power at 10 Downing Street.
Here are four things to know about the purr-fect puss who has charmed his way into the hearts of top politicians over the years:
Humble roots
Recruited to tackle a rodent problem, Larry arrived at the prime minister’s official residence on 15 February 2011.
He was adopted from the renowned London animal shelter Battersea Dogs and Cats Home and believed to be around four years old at the time. David Cameron was in office then.
The white and tabby cat, officially introduced on Downing Street’s website as the “Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office”, has ruled the country’s most photographed doorstep ever since.
According to his official biography, Larry’s duties include “greeting guests to the house, inspecting security defences and testing antique furniture for napping quality,” in addition to rodent control.
Six prime ministers
Larry has seen six prime ministers come and go, from Cameron to Keir Starmer, weathered the storms of Brexit, Covid-19, the chaos of “partygate”, Liz Truss’s 49-day whirlwind term and the more orderly months under Rishi Sunak.
Nothing seems to ruffle his fur as this political veteran glides from crisis to crisis with feline calm.
A media darling, Larry often steals the spotlight from visiting foreign leaders. In December, he greeted Volodymyr Zelensky, and in January, he caused a photographer to stumble on the red carpet during a visit by Poland’s president.
Cat-fluencer
Larry boasts an X account, @Number10cat, followed by over 877,500 fans.
Run by an anonymous user, he grumbles about rain and occasionally takes catty swipes at politicians, including the UK Reform Party and the administration of Donald Trump.
His first months “in office” inspired the 2011 book The Larry Diaries.
Larry now shares the No. 10 residence with JoJo and Prince, the Starmer family cats. Prince, a Siberian, joined the household in 2024 after “negotiations” with Starmer’s children, who had wanted a German Shepherd.
Larry is considered a permanent civil servant, which means he will remain at Downing Street indefinitely — unlike prime ministers.
Famous felines
Larry is part of a long tradition of political cats.
On Saturday, news came that Palmerston, the black-and-white former mouser of the Foreign Office, had passed away in Bermuda, where he retired in 2020. Larry paid tribute on his X account, brushing aside rumours of rivalry.
Under Bill Clinton, the black-and-white cat Socks lived at the White House from 1993 to 2001, becoming a star of several books.
In Belgium, a rescue cat named Maximus has risen to social media fame as the whiskered sidekick and PR asset of Bart De Wever.
