Larry the cat, the UK’s most famous feline, marked 15 years on February 15 as the country’s chief mouser patrolling the corridors of power around number 10 Downing Street. See story below. Recruited to deal with a rodent problem, Larry arrived at the prime minister’s official residence on February 15, 2011.
He was adopted from the renowned London animal shelter, Battersea Dogs and Cats Home, when he was believed to be about four years old. David Cameron was prime minister at the time. 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.” He has lived through six prime ministers, from Cameron to Keir Starmer, weathered the storms of Brexit, Covid-19, the chaos of “partygate,” Liz Truss’s 49‑day whirlwind occupation, 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, 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.
Read Full Article on The Mercury
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In December, he was on the doorstep to greet the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. In January, he even sent a photographer stumbling on the red carpet after darting unexpectedly between his legs during a visit by Poland’s president. A whiskered influencer, Larry also boasts an X account @Number10cat followed by more than 877,500 fans.
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