Which famous Brit lives at 10 Downing Street?
And the answer: prime minister.
Located in London, 10 Downing Street is the official residence and the office of the British prime minister. Since 1735, the address has been the home and office of prime ministers including Winston Churchill and Margaret Thatcher.
10 Downing Street is a treasured site of British heritage. It has experienced its fair share of change throughout the 300-some years of its history (its door was once repainted green! Gasp!), but it remains a staple and defining factor of the British political system. Test your knowledge of 10 Downing with some fun facts about this historic residence of the prime minister below.
- It is deceptively big. Though the modest townhouse exterior hardly lets on, there are about 100 rooms in 10 Downing Street. Labyrinth-like hallways twist around the property, which actually consists of three buildings and a half-acre garden.
- It was almost destroyed in World War II. In 1940, the Luftwaffe just about obliterated parts of the residence. Luckily, prime minister Winston Churchill was dining in the Garden Room when the attack occurred, but soon relocated to a bunker to ensure his own safety.
- Every prime minister since 1997 has actually lived at No. 11 Downing Street. Tony Blair, prime minister at the time, had a family of six that wouldn't quite fit comfortably in the space. Naturally, he exchanged residences with Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown. The tradition has continued ever since.
Learn more about Britain's most famous address here.
