‘Politicians come and go’: Larry the cat welcomes 7th British prime minister

LONDON - Larry the cat, Britain’s most famous feline, on July 20 welcomed his seventh housemate at 10 Downing Street since he began patrolling the corridors of power more than 15 years ago.

“Politicians come and go; cats are permanent,” Larry’s X account @Number10cat posted, as the country’s chief mouser waited for incoming leader Andy Burnham to replace Keir Starmer.

In instructions to his new employers he wrote: “Larry likes his breakfast at 9, brunch at 1030 and lunch at noon with plenty of snacks in between. The rest of the job is a doddle.”

Here are some things to know about the troubled office’s only purr-manent resident.

Humble roots

Recruited to deal with a rodent problem, Larry arrived at the prime minister’s official residence on February 15, 2011, when David Cameron was leader.

He was adopted from a London animal shelter when he was believed to be about four years old.

Since then, the white and tabby cat, officially introduced on Downing Street’s website as the “Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office”, has reigned supreme from the country’s most photographed doorstep.

His official biography on the Downing Street website says apart from rodent control: “Larry spends his days greeting guests to the house, inspecting security defences and testing antique furniture for napping quality.”

Six prime ministers down

He has lived through six prime ministers, from Cameron to Starmer, weathered the storms of Brexit, Covid-19, the chaos of “partygate” and Liz Truss’s 49‑day whirlwind occupation.

Unlike some of Starmer’s Cabinet, Larry is set to keep his job under Burnham.

Nothing seems to ruffle his fur as this political veteran glides from crisis to crisis with feline calm, and the lick of a paw.

A media darling, Larry, who is now believed to be around 19, often steals the spotlight from visiting foreign leaders.

In December, he was on the doorstep to greet the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Cat-fluencer

A whiskered influencer, Larry’s X account is followed by more than 900,000 fans.

Run by an anonymous user, Larry grumbles about getting caught in the rain and sometimes takes catty swipes, notably at Reform UK politicians and US President Donald Trump.

His first months “in office” even inspired a book, “The Larry Diaries”, published in 2011.

Larry dutifully shared the No. 10 residence with JoJo and Prince, the Starmer family cats, for the last two years.

His next guest might be trickier, with British media noting that the Burnham family has a dog. It is unclear whether the pooch will be moving in. AFP