Inside Downing Street: What's in store for the Sunaks

Inside Downing Street: What's in store for the Sunaks

10/25/2022

Inside Downing Street: What’s in store for the Sunaks as they move into their new home – from a rose garden to a resident ‘chief mouser’ (and why they’ll probably choose to live NEXT DOOR to Number 10)

  • 10 Downing Street in London has been the home of prime ministers since 1735
  • Rishi Sunak will be the 56th PM to live there, with his wife and two daughters
  • Over the years the iconic property has had several renovations and restorations 

When Rishi Sunak moves into 10 Downing Street with his wife Akshata Murthy and their two daughters, he will become the 56th prime minister to live in the SW1A property.

Downing Street has been home to the leader of the UK Government since 1735 and has been the headquarters from which the nation’s leaders have navigated world wars, financial crises and pandemics.

The property serves three functions: It is the official residence of the prime minister, as well as their official office, and the place where UK leaders host other world figures and guests from His Majesty the King.

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Former prime minister Sir Tony Blair in 10 Downing Street’s Terracotta Room in 2005, which was renovated in the late 1980s by Margaret Thatcher. Rishi Sunak will become the 56th leader of the UK to live in the SW1A property

The main staircase inside is lined with photos of former prime ministers from Sir Robert Walpole to Liz Truss (pictured: David Cameron on the staircase during his time in office)

Downing Street’s rose garden, which was the scene of Boris Johnson’s former adviser Dominic Cummings’s press conference after the Barnard Castle controversy in 2020

Downing Street’s ‘Chief Mouser’ Larry was brought into the prime ministerial home by David Cameron in 2012 as a pet for his children

Upon walking through the black door, visitors are greeted with a black-and-white chequered hallway with an elegant staircase leading up to the first floor. Photos of previous prime ministers hang on the yellow walls around the stairs.

The prime minister’s living quarters make up just a fraction of the building, which is mainly office space for the dozens of staff who work inside.

In the early 18th century, when the address was first utilised as the home and office of the prime minister, 10 Downing Street was actually adjoined to another, more elegant building behind it in order to create the space needed for its new purpose.

As for the other residents on the street, the most famous neighbour of the prime minister is their chancellor of the exchequer, who lives at Number 11.

10 Downing Street’s White Reception Room has seen prime ministers host audiences with several VIP guests, such as Theresa May hosting US secretary of state John Kerry in 2016

However, in more recent years some prime ministers have chosen to live in the flats above Number 11, which have been considered more spacious. 

Sir Tony Blair was the first to do this when he entered office in 1997 – and his successors Gordon Brown, David Cameron, Theresa May and Boris Johnson opted to follow suit.

The chief whip of the ruling party has also been known to live at 9 Downing Street (although the official residence of this position is Number 12).

After housing prime ministers for nearly 300 years, it is perhaps unsurprising that the residence has had several renovations – as well as an intense restoration.

The building was determined to have serious structural problems at the end of the Second World War, including sloping walls and twisted door frames. 

Eventually, during Harold MacMillan’s tenure, 10 Downing Street was restored in a project costing around £1 million which took three years to complete.

Since then, the structural problems seem to have largely been kept at bay however some of the building’s most famous reception rooms have been renovated by different leaders.

During her 11 years in office, Margaret Thatcher oversaw renovations to the White Drawing Room and the Terracotta Room – both of which are used to host important guests.

The latter, on the first floor of Number 10, was actually called the Blue Room when Thatcher first took office in 1979 – but she decided she preferred the warm tones of an orange hue in the reception space.

The renovation was carried out at the end of the 1980s when Mrs Thatcher was close to the end of her time in office and she hired interior designer Quinlan Terry to carry out the work.

The space itself was first used as a dining room by Sir Robert Walpole, who was the UK’s first prime minister.

Having lived at 10 Downing Street for so long, Mrs Thatcher left her mark on the residence and now has a room named after her in the property.

The Thatcher Room was used as her personal study during her time in office, and a painting of her hangs on the wall inside.

It’s not just the interior of Number 10 that has an impressive history – with the property’s rose garden being the site of several historic press conferences over the years.

When Sir Tony left office in 2007, to hand over the reins to Mr Brown, he hosted a farewell reception in the rose garden.

In more recent memory, the British media gathered in the rose garden during the pandemic, to attend a press conference hosted by Mr Johnson’s former adviser, Dominic Cummings, after it was revealed he had broken lockdown rules to drive from London to Durham after he had tested positive for Covid in 2020.

Shortly before leaves office, David Cameron sits in an armchair with Larry after rumours he and the chief mouser had a frosty relationship

As well as the dozens of people filing in and out of 10 Downing Street every day, the house is also home to a sassy feline and ‘chief mouser’, Larry.

He is a rescue from Battersea Dogs and Cats Home who was brought into Number 10 in 2011 and was originally intended to be a pet for David and Samantha Cameron’s children.

According to the 10 Downing Street website, Larry’s duties include: ‘Greeting guests to the house, inspecting security defences and testing antique furniture for napping quality’.

The website adds: ‘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”.’ 

By the time Mrs May became prime minister in 2016, Larry had developed a reputation for being ‘aggressive’ – particularly towards the Number 11 cat, Palmerston, a black-and-white moggy.

It was also rumoured that outgoing prime minister Mr Cameron had a frosty relationship with the feline – prompting him to take a photo of himself sitting on an armchair with Larry on his lap just before he moved out, which he held up in his final Prime Minister’s Questions as ‘proof’ that they got along just fine.

In recent years Larry has been spotted attacking a pigeon outside his house in front of the world’s media and chasing off a fox who dared to enter his territory.

He was also filmed snubbing prime minister Liz Truss, who is on her way out of Downing Street, when she bent down to try and stroke him during her 49-day tenure.

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