After welcoming Prime Minister Keir Starmer in early July, Downing Street cat Larry will have to deal with a new roommate: a Siberian kitten adopted by the head of government’s children.
Larry, who has already served under six prime ministers, arrived in Downing Street on February 15, 2011, with one mission: to rid the place of rodents.
But since then, the 17-year-old “chief mouser” has become a real attraction and one of the most famous cats in the world. His @Number10cat (unofficial) account on X has more than 900,000 followers.
Known for being awkward with those who dare to venture into his territory, Larry has already issued a warning to the newcomer on X: “The kitten will BE ACCOUNTABLE to Larry.”
The message came as Keir Starmer announced that his 13-year-old daughter had picked up the Siberian kitten on Monday.
The Starmer family already had a cat, Jojo, and the British press was worried on Tuesday about how the three felines would get along.
“The problem we have, which was already there for Jojo, is that the only door out of our new flat is armoured, so having a cat flap is somewhat difficult,” the Prime Minister explained in an interview with the BBC.
Keir Starmer’s predecessor, Rishi Sunak, had a dog, Nova. According to his wife, Akshata Murty, Nova and Larry had “heated exchanges”, but it was Larry who “came out on top”.
The authorities are ready if he were to die: if the plan for the death of Queen Elizabeth II was code-named “London Bridge”, the one for the tabby and white cat has been christened “Larry Bridges”.
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