Random things in pursuit of fic

[nineveh_uk]

Tonight, when British passports first included photographs, and when airmail started.

Meanwhile, I am suddenly consumed by the desire to read "Harriet and Peter, undercover as married couple" fic. Oh world, why will you not indulge me?

Comments

[antisoppist]

Did you find out when British passports first included photographs? I was going to say my grandfather's passports from when he was in his late teens/early twenties have photographs but that would have been 1910s or so (born 1895, he avoided WWI France by already being in the Persian Gulf building telegraphy masts) and I'm wondering whether I was imagining it. The two passports do each give different eye colours though - blue and green.

That is fic I didn't know I wanted.

[nineveh_uk]

Wikipedias says they definitely got them by/in 1914, but it's unclear whether some might have included a photo before this. I didn't pursue it, as all I needed was "by 1936". So you weren't imagining it, even if he your grandfather had fanfic eyes.

The world suddenly feels incomplete without its existence. After all, just because they don’t do it in Gaudy Night, doesn’t mean that in different circumstances it might not be necessary*. Harriet's continental jaunt might be the best setting.

*FOr a fic version of necessary.

[antisoppist]

even if your grandfather had fanfic eyes.
Not very reliable as identifying information really. Perhaps they were turquoise.

A version of HHC but where Harriet has gone abroad instead and needs to infiltrate somewhere in investigating it, at which point Peter just happens to walk down the street? Though it would have to not be framed as him getting her out of trouble *again*. Perhaps it would be better balanced if she was doing it to help *him* in one of his investigations but I'm not sure if there is ever a point at which he's going to be able to say "I know you don't want to marry me but would you just pretend for a bit?"

[nineveh_uk]

Or cerulean.


Perhaps it happens in the heat of the moment when they just want to get out of X and Peter thinks that "unhand my wife!" is the option least likely to result in violence, or Harriet introduces P. as her husband/a get-out clause, and they they get stuck. Or they're just assumed to be married due to some sort of misunderstanding/assumption on the part of other people, and they realise that if they correct it, will blow Peter’s/their/Harriet’s cover. Peter would be appalled and say they ought not to anyway, and Harriet would say they have to in the interests of justice, while being resentful of the universe because if she accepts Peter’s offer to end the pretence then she will feel guilty about letting down Justice for personal things, and also thinks Peter won’t be able to help resenting it and while of course she has no reason at all not to mind Peter’s resenting her and thus not wanting to really marry her, which actually ought to be what she wants, as in the GN scene in the club, she doesn’t want to get rid of him in this particular way.

[lizvogel]

That sounds so very them that I feel like I have already read this fanfic.

[clanwilliam]

The first airmail was in 1911 for George V's coronation (I know this because I've used it as a quiz question!)

[(Anonymous)]

When were they?

[nineveh-uk.livejournal.com]

They definitely had them in late 1914 - I haven't gone into it further because that works for my purposes, but I think tht some passports may have had photos earlier than this.

[occasionalhope.livejournal.com]

The first airmail flight was in 1911, in Windsor.