The UK have just held a General Election. 

For professional reasons, Belvedere and I must eschew expressing any political opinion, so we could not possibly comment on the wipeout result. And elections don’t mean much to cats, as they don’t vote (yet), They probably wouldn’t, as they are autonomous anarchists.  

How will the result affect Larry the Downing Street Cat?  Larry is, of course, world famous, has his own Twitter account (840k followers) and Insta (16k followers). As a civil servant, he will remain on staff regardless of who is in power, although he is well past retirement age. He is Chief Mouser, a job at which he is shocking inept. He made a show public killing in 2013, pour encourager les autres, just enough for credibility.

Because this is all a front. Larry is an M16 agent provocateur and disrupter. He is really good at it. Weapon of choice is the photobomb. Photographers vie to get the Larry shot, regardless of any human VIP. The lectern used outside Downing Street for Very Important Announcements is his scratching post. He deploys the simplest of cat behaviours to cause chaos. He held up Trump’s presidential cortege by simply napping under The Beast (Trump’s armoured limo) .All cats nap. Plausible deniability. No-one is going to risk political oblivion by flattening a pussy cat.  Larry is a wily old pro.

The incoming PM, Sir Kier Starmer, is owned by a cat called Jo Jo, a fellow alumnus of Battersea Dogs and Cats Home, Larry’s alma  mater, We don’t know yet whether Jo Jo will join the household, Larry likes to work alone. Interesting times.

To enjoy cats who are smart like Larry but in a different way, take a look at Ian Heath’s Clever Cats,  a  Clowder Press Essential title.