Prime Ministers’ Cats over the years

Prime Minister's wife Cherie Blair posing with Humphrey the cat in the gardens of No.10 Downing Street, 1997. Image credit: Fiona Hanson/PA - ID: 2D2Y8RA/Alamy

Downing Street Cats in the 20th Century

In 1903, during Arthur Balfour’s premiership, the Dundee Evening Telegraph ran the headline ‘Lost! The Downing Street Cat’, asking if anyone had seen Topsy. She had clashed with the Chancellor of the Exchequer’s cat Tom, having beaten him in the best of three rounds: Topsy was a general favourite… a good cat of her claws; but she disappeared after the fight, leaving Balfour bereft and Tom ‘inconsolable’ too.

Office Cats vs Official Cats: Tatler’s 1907 Classification

In 1907, the society magazine Tatler featured a detailed article on ‘Cats in Office: Mieous from Whitehall’, which explained the difference between the two types of resident feline.

The office cat, said Tatler, ‘seldom has any locus standi [legal standing] and lives on charity all year round whereas the official cat is a recognised member of the community and has a fixed allowance for food and other necessities’. As part of the article, Tatler photographed seven of these cats in and around government buildings: Tommy Liza the Privy Council cat, Toby the Home Office cat, Joe the Board of Education cat, Tits and Tats the Mansion House cats, Trillie Williams the War Office cat and Duke, the Paymaster General’s cat.

Bob the Downing Street Cat: A Wartime Symbol of Luck

Famous lucky black cat strolls past No. 10 Downing Street, 1939, Image credit: Smith Archive/Alamy ID:2Y6N1JN

As war loomed in 1939, Bob the Downing Street cat was thought to be a sign of good luck. He had been spotted during the signing of the Munich Agreement the year before and was seen again just days before the outbreak of the Second World War. The Dundee Courier wrote: ‘The famous black cat which has given a homely touch in Downing Street in times of international crisis reappeared yesterday afternoon. It walked nonchalantly up the street, and as it reached the door of No.10 there was a cheer by the onlookers. When photographers rushed forward the cat turned round and scampered out of sight’. By the time Bob died in August 1943, he had become one of the most photographed cats in the world.

The Evolution of the Chief Mouser Role

Churchill first became Prime Minister in 1940. He, as have many who work in Westminster to this day, knew rodent infestations can be dealt with by employing cats. While there were clear indicators of official versus unofficial cats in Whitehall, it appears the role of chief mouser of the United Kingdom dates back to at least 1924. The first to take on this role was a marmalade cat who had two names: Smokey and Rufus of England. In 1936, the Cabinet Office argued that Jumbo, their resident mouser, deserved an allowance. When he died eight years later, the world was at war and men were needed at the front, so one Cabinet Office wag suggested that Jumbo’s successor should be female, given that women were doing so many of the jobs that men had done previously

Peter the Home Office Cat

Historians disagree on which was the first official government cat, but we do know that Peter lived in the Home Office from 1929 to 1946. His upkeep was funded by voluntary contributions from civil servants, as is the case for the cats of Whitehall today. He was so loved, and indeed spoiled, that he was not particularly good at the serious business of actually chasing mice. (It appears the pattern started early on this point – Larry, we’re looking at you.) To tackle the issue, the Home Office asked the Treasury for a formal food budget to limit Peter’s overindulgence, get him into shape and to allow him to turn his paws to the role which was supposedly his raison d’être. One penny a week was agreed for Peter’s upkeep. Peter performed his duties well under this new regime. Indeed, when a section of the Home Office moved to Bournemouth during the Second World War, Peter was so missed that staff there applied for an allowance to keep two cats.

Alas, in 1946, at the age of seventeen, Peter was put to sleep. His successor was Peter II, a two-month-old male kitten. But the sequel sadly did not last as long as the original as Peter II was tragically run over on Whitehall in June 1947.

Tango: Churchill’s Wartime Comfort

As war raged across Europe in 1941, with the Allies on the back foot having suffered a number of naval defeats, Churchill’s private secretary Colville and Tango the cat had lunch together. In his book, Churchill’s Bestiary, Piers Brendon cites Colville’s recollection of Tango being seated in his own chair next to Churchill, who ‘kept up a running conversation with the cat, cleaning its eyes with a napkin, offering it mutton and expressing regret that it could not have cream in wartime’. Sadly Tango died a year later, about the same time as the fall of Tobruk, so Colville and other advisers decided to withhold the news about Tango’s passing from Churchill until the war situation began to look up.

Nelson: The Most Famous of Churchill’s Feline Companions

Winston Churchill stops 'Blackie', ship's cat of HMS PRINCE OF WALES — Winston Churchill stops ‘Blackie’, ship’s cat of HMS PRINCE OF WALES, crossing over to a US destroyer during the Atlantic Conference, August 1941. Image: IWM (H 12756)

To the general public, though, it was a large grey cat called Nelson who was most associated with Prime Minister Churchill during the war. American war correspondent Quentin Reynolds, author of All About Winston Churchill, noted his subject’s love of animals and of Nelson in particular. ‘Nelson is the bravest cat I ever knew,’ Churchill once said. ‘I once saw him chase a huge dog out of the Admiralty. I decided to adopt him and name him Nelson’.

With a self-confidence that Larry would be proud of, Nelson was just a few moments into his new home at No. 10 before he gave chase to and asserted his authority over Neville Chamberlain’s cat, who was known derogatorily as the Munich Mouser after the previous Prime Minister’s deal that promised – but did not deliver – ‘peace in our time’. Nelson was Churchill’s ‘hot water bottle’, according to Brendon, and was, like many of his pets, extremely spoiled. Even during wartime rationing, when most food was scarce, the cat was treated to pheasant, cream and smoked salmon. Nelson was even included in the family’s evacuation plans should Downing Street be attacked, but Churchill, like many Londoners, showed the Blitz Spirit and did not leave. The cat did once hide in a drawer during an air raid, though, prompting Churchill to quip, according to Brendon’s source, ‘Shame on you, bearing a name such as yours, to skulk there while the enemy is overhead’. As Britain’s outlook worsened and Nazi bombs fell more heavily on London, the decision was made to evacuate Nelson to Chequers, the country home of the British Prime Minister.

Smoky: The Calm Successor During the Blitz

Smoky, a fluffy dark Persian, replaced him as the Downing Street cat. Smoky had been living in the Cabinet Office next door and was seemingly less fazed by the chaos of war. Smoky was allowed into Churchill’s quarters and slept on the bed, just as Nelson had done. Following a serious Cabinet leak, the head of MI6, Sir Stewart Menzies visited Churchill in the prime ministerial bedroom. During their conversation, Smoky moved onto the windowsill, causing Churchill to quip, ‘You see it is as I thought – my cat is signalling with his tail to the pelicans in the park.’

Churchill: The Tradition of Jock at Chartwell

Jock VII, one of the long line of ginger cats, first housed at Chartwell by Sir Winston Churchill. ©National Trust Images/Sarah Haile

Churchill was a big cat man personally. He had bought the Kent estate, Chartwell, in 1922 early in his career when he was a successful government minister, MP and author. Like many of the upper classes in the post-war years, Churchill struggled with the financial demands of a large estate. Churchill did a deal through which Chartwell became a National Trust property but he was granted a life tenancy, which Clementine Churchill eventually gave up in 1966. Part of the agreement stipulated there would always be an orange cat with a white bib and four white socks named Jock in residence. Why? Because the original Jock – an eighty-eighth birthday present to Churchill from his private secretary Sir John ‘Jock’ Colville, after whom the cat was named – was such a great friend to Churchill at Chartwell. He was a true comfort to Churchill in his final years and even took pride of place, sitting on his master’s knee, in the photographs of the wedding of Churchill’s grandson.

Jock VII: Continuing the Tradition

The tradition of a Jock at Chartwell endures to this day. Jock VII, a six-month-old RSPCA rescue kitten, arrived at Chartwell in May 2020 and, much like his predecessors, quickly became head honcho. Having started life in difficult conditions, alongside dozens of other cats rescued with him, his rags-to-riches tale is now complete, with the National Trust reporting that Jock VII enjoys ‘investigating what the gardeners are up to and playing down in the long grasses of the orchard. He also likes lots of cuddles on the sofa after an eventful day’. Having a Jock at Chartwell in perpetuity certainly cements Churchill’s legacy as an animal lover committed to helping them find good homes. The original Jock was allowed to sleep on the same bed as Churchill – a privilege that the Chartwell Jocks enjoy to this day.

Humphrey: Retirement, Media Frenzy, and Legacy

There were a number of cats since, but, notably, Humphrey the cat caused some controversy in the late 1990s when he retired. In early November 1997, Humphrey’s primary carer, a civil servant called Jonathan Rees, who worked in the No.10 Policy Unit, wrote a memo suggesting that the ageing cat should be allowed to go to a ‘stable home environment where he can be looked after properly’ to see out his days. A vet agreed, especially as Humphrey’s kidney complaint had persisted and he had lost interest in food. So, on 13 November, Humphrey left Downing Street and moved in with an older couple in the London suburbs.

Eleven days after Humphrey left Downing Street a group of journalists was taken to a secret location, which may have been his new home, to prove that he was alive and well, and that he had even put on some weight. The pictures of a happy, healthy Humphrey were published in the papers the next day. After Humphrey left, the Downing Street spin machine claimed that ‘a new puss has been interviewed and will soon replace Humphrey on Downing Street rodent duty,’ but it never happened under the Blair administration.

The cat remained happily in retirement until March 2006, when a spokesman for Tony Blair informed the press that Humphrey had died at the age of eighteen, which is a good age for a male cat. Paying tribute, Conservative MP Roger Gale, a frequent visitor to 10 Downing Street during the Thatcher and Major years, said: ‘Humphrey was often curled up on the doorkeeper’s chair and a very reassuring presence to those entering No.10 on business. We were sad when Humphrey was ‘retireď with the arrival of the Blairs. Humphrey clearly had a much loved and comfortable old age. We were all sorry to learn, today, of his death, and we shall all remember the Downing Street cat with great affection’.

Author, Peter Cardwell

‘Political Animals: The secret life of the political pets of Westminster and Washington’, Biteback Publishing, 2025

4th February 2026

About Peter Cardwell

Peter lives in London with his rescue cat Jack. He is a broadcaster, author, academic and international political commentator. He has served as a special adviser in the UK government, working across four departments, and has worked for the BBC, Sky News and ITV. He is currently a presenter on Talk and, occasionally, Times Radio. He has met Larry the cat many times

Prime Ministers’ Cats over the years

Downing Street Cats in the 20th Century

Office Cats vs Official Cats: Tatler’s 1907 Classification