Larry (cat)

Rather cutely, "Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office" is an official title, dating back to the 16th century:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chief_Mouser_to_the_Cabinet_Of...

This just seems so quintessentially British, it made me smile. I bet Larry has seen some things in his time.

In typical fashion, Canada had a similar, though more feral, version of this at our Parliament: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parliament_Hill_cat_colony

The Wikipedia article is obviously in error. It’s clear to me that the government serves Larry and at his convenience.

You are correct. As anyone who has lived with a cat knows, you do not own the cat, the cat owns you.

If you're in the UK you know exactly who this is without having to click the link

See also previous Chief Mousers to the Cabinet Office, going back approx 100 years:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sybil_(cat)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Humphrey_(cat)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilberforce_(cat)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peta_(cat)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_III_(cat)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_II_(cat)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nelson_(cat)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Munich_Mouser

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_(chief_mouser)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rufus_of_England

His twitter account is well known for its cat-like snark.

> the first one to be given the official title of chief mouser by the British government was Larry in 2011

I always find it incredibly sweet and endearing whenever humans write / document things like this. It's almost like a definition or example of what humanity means.. creatures with brainpower - a organ that's the most complex (and power efficient!) thing in the known universe.

A good reminder that culture can be beautiful.

Is there really such a mice problem at Downing street that people catch mice during dinner?

I was hoping that I wasn't getting my news from HN for a moment there.

Wonderfully, the official government webpage[1] lists his duties as:

  Larry spends his days greeting guests to the house, inspecting security defences and testing antique furniture for napping quality. His day-to-day responsibilities also include contemplating a solution to the mouse occupancy of the house. Larry says this is still ‘in tactical planning stage’.

[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/history/10-downing-street#larr...

That's the difference between the cabinet office and No 10.

Putting the "Larry with Boris Johnson in 2019" photo under the heading of "Relationships with other animals" is hilarious, intentional or not.

British politicians are notorious sloppy eaters, lots of crumbs to be had.

Bear in mind that it's of Georgian construction and Grade 1 listed (so not just a façade), so there is presumably plenty of wood and plaster in its construction with corresponding voids. With humans comes food morsels. Some of the rooms offer doors onto the garden. Mice seem inevitable in those circumstances.

I wonder which bridge it will be

There's a mouse problem in the whole city. But then there's a mouse/rat problem in more or less any city of similar population density.

This compilation video of him chasing a Fox, killing a pidgeon, and fighting with (recently retired) admiralty cat Palmerston is worth a watch (1min 21 sec)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wnypWoeopNg

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palmerston_(cat)

> ... opinion poll from Ipsos showed that Larry had a higher favourability rating (44%) and net favourability rating (40%) than both Sunak (22% and –36%) and Starmer (34% and –7%).

Larry might be the only one who can beat Farage at this point.

Dogs have owners. Cats have staff.

> Larry has lived at 10 Downing Street during the premierships of six prime ministers

Six! The troublesome times this cat has witnessed from close by...

Yes, Number 10 Downing Street is three eighteenth-century houses joined together. When cleaning dirt from the industrial revolution off the building's facade, it was discovered that the bricks underneath were actually yellow, but it was soon painted black because people were so used to seeing it that way on TV.

More generally, Britain and its former empire are and always were governed strictly on a least-effort, least-cost basis. There is a lot of wealth and splendour in this country, but it's privately owned; the public realm is rather run down.

18 years old is getting up there for a cat! He should start training an apprentice.

That would certainly be an improvement over the monarchy.

Boris the animal?

It's just Boris!

I like how https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chief_Mouser_to_the_Cabinet_Of... has a timeline and highlights if the Chief Mouser was under a Conservative or Labour government.

> Within a month of his arrival at Downing Street, anonymous sources described Larry as having "a distinct lack of killer instinct."[11] Later that year, it was revealed that Larry spent more time sleeping than hunting for mice, and shared the company of a female cat, Maisie.[12] At one point in 2011, mice were so endemic in Downing Street that the Prime Minister, David Cameron, resorted to throwing a fork at one during a Cabinet dinner.[12]

Not to speak well of Britain's current leadership, nor ill of the theory behind it - but they need to split the Chief Mouser office into a symbolic head of state, and an actual working leader. Perhaps "His Meowjesty", and a "Prime Mouser"?

For extra fun - pay for their upkeep via "gifts" from members of the press, who hope to receive juicy leaks and preferential access (both only relating to the cats) in return.

I can't believe how long this Wikipedia article is and complete with sources! Like, it's just a cat! I'm surprised the notoriety police haven't swooped in.

And a predecessor: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_(chief_mouser)

Served under: Ramsay MacDonald, Stanley Baldwin, Neville Chamberlain, Winston Churchill, and Clement Attlee

Trying to get a pigeon. It escaped.

It’s been written about by so many reputable sources that it clearly meets Wikipedia’s peculiar definition of notoriety, whether or not it meets other more normal definitions.

It's kind of unavoidable with those sorts of buildings. Amsterdam (and similar places) get it even worse - all those waterways with buildings of a similar age mean that it's a haven for mice.

Some other UK cat history, https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-devon-66665613

From stray cat to Chief Mouser - nice career.

> David Cameron has said that Larry is a "bit nervous" around men, speculating that, since Larry was a rescue cat, this may be due to negative experiences in his past. Cameron mentioned that Barack Obama is an apparent exception to this fear: he said, "Funnily enough he liked Obama. Obama gave him a stroke and he was all right with Obama."

> In September 2013 tensions were reportedly growing between Cameron and Larry....

The entire Relationship with other politicians section is a hilarious read.

Another cat (formerly) in UK politics: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catmando