{"id":297005,"date":"2026-02-21T11:37:33","date_gmt":"2026-02-21T09:37:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/noordkaapbulletin\/paw-patrol-larry-the-cat-marks-15-years-of-service-at-10-downing-street\/"},"modified":"2026-02-21T11:40:16","modified_gmt":"2026-02-21T09:40:16","slug":"paw-patrol-larry-the-cat-marks-15-years-of-service-at-10-downing-street","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/noordkaapbulletin\/paw-patrol-larry-the-cat-marks-15-years-of-service-at-10-downing-street\/","title":{"rendered":"Paw patrol: Larry the cat marks 15 years of \u2018service\u2019 at 10 Downing Street"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

LONDON <\/strong>– Larry the cat, the UK’s most famous feline, marked 15 years as the country’s chief mouser patrolling the corridors of power around number 10 Downing Street<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are a few things to know about the purr-fect puss who over the years has charmed his
way into the hearts of some of the world’s top politicians.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Humble roots<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Recruited to deal with 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, when he was believed to be about four years old. David Cameron was prime minister at the time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Six prime ministers<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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

A media darling, Larry, who is now believed to be around 19, often steals the spotlight from visiting foreign leaders. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In December, he was on the doorstep to greet the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cat-fluencer<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

A whiskered influencer, Larry also boasts an X account @Number10cat followed by more than 877 500 fans. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Run by an anonymous user, Larry grumbles about getting caught in the rain and sometimes
takes catty swipes at politicians, notably UK Reform and the administration of US President
Donald Trump.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ALSO READ: <\/strong>Belgium\u2019s Prime Minister and His \u2018Fel-Influencer\u2019: How a Rescue Cat Became a Political PR Sensation<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

His first months “in office” even inspired a book, “The Larry Diaries”, published in 2011.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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 dog.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But there was a problem: “the only door out of our new flat is bomb proof,” Starmer told the
BBC in 2024. “Therefore, getting a cat flap is proving a little bit difficult.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Larry’s fans can relax though: he is considered a permanent civil servant, which means he
gets to stay at Downing Street for good. Unlike prime ministers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Famous felines<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Larry is not alone in being a feline companion to politicians.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last week came sad news that Palmerston, a black-and-white cat, once mouser to the
Foreign Office and “Diplocat extraordinaire”, had passed away in Bermuda where he retired in
2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Farewell old friend x,” Larry posted on his X account, brushing aside rumours of rivalry
between the pair.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Under former US president Bill Clinton, the black-and-white cat Socks took up residence in
the White House from 1993 to 2001. Once a stray, Socks became the star of several books and was often featured by the UK cartoonist Steve Bell in his daily comic strips.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And in Belgium, a rescue cat named Maximus has shot to social media stardom as the
bewhiskered sidekick and PR weapon of Prime Minister Bart De Wever.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Discover how Larry the cat has charmed politicians during his 15 years of service at 10 Downing Street as chief 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the cat marks 15 years of service | Noordkaap Bulletin<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Discover how Larry the cat has charmed politicians during his 15 years of service at 10 Downing Street as chief mouser.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/noordkaapbulletin\/paw-patrol-larry-the-cat-marks-15-years-of-service-at-10-downing-street\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Paw patrol: Larry the cat marks 15 years of \u2018service\u2019 at 10 Downing Street\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Discover how Larry the cat has charmed politicians during his 15 years of service at 10 Downing Street as chief mouser.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" 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