Larry the Downing Street Cat, 19, Has Outlasted 6 Prime Ministers

Prime ministers come and go from 10 Downing Street. The cat stays.

Larry, the 19-year-old tabby who holds the title Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office, was the subject of a roughly five-minute CBS News Sunday Morning segment that aired Nov. 1. Correspondent Holly Williams profiled the official pet of the British leader’s residence. CBS called him a favorite of the press and a political fixture whose nine lives have outlasted six prime ministers.¹

That is a long career for anyone, and a long life for a cat. The average age for a cat in the UK is 11.7 years, according to the charity Cats Protection.⁶

From rescue home to the most famous door in Britain

Larry came from Battersea Dogs & Cats Home and moved into Downing Street on Feb. 15, 2011.⁵ He was believed to be about four years old when he was adopted, and he is thought to have been born in January 2007. His age is an estimate.³⁷

Downing Street’s website introduces him by his formal title. He is considered a permanent civil servant, so he stays at Downing Street for good.⁷

He has been in post under David Cameron, Theresa May, Boris Johnson, Liz Truss, Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer. Along the way he has met world leaders including Barack Obama and Volodymyr Zelenskyy.² Few civil servants can say they watched the top job change hands that many times without once having to clear out their desk.

Foxes, pigeons and a famous neighbor

According to the CBS transcript, Larry has fought off foxes, pigeons and Palmerston, the Foreign Office cat, who has recently died.¹

Downing Street marked Larry’s 15 years in the role in February 2026.⁵ No 10 would not say whether he might retire, but said then that he remained in post.²

Back on patrol after a minor operation

In October, Downing Street announced that Larry was back after a minor operation to remove a cyst and was recovering well. A Downing Street source said he was already roaming the building again.⁴

“He is feline much better but taking things one paw at a time.”

That line came from a Downing Street source quoted by LBC, and the same message was posted on Downing Street’s official X account.⁴

A record within reach

If Larry stays in post for about two more years, he could pass Peter III, who served from 1947 to 1964, as Downing Street’s longest-serving resident mouser. That estimate comes from the Ukrainian outlet Hromadske and is not an official figure.³