People are only just realising why Postmen write 'P' on the front of letters
Despite being a British institution, people are only just realising why postmen write 'P' on the front of letters.
Ah, the Royal Mail - a famed British institution. Formed all the way back in 1516, many a generation have interacted with the RM in some way.
We chat with our postmen, lean on its bright red letterboxes, and consider using its services before opting for something more trustworthy like Hermes or DPD (just kidding).
Despite our close contact with the organisation, its inner workings are often a mystery to your common bystander.
And one group of Brits have raised a pretty serious question about a certain code they've been noticing on their letters, according to The Star.
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The letter P. A big one. In capitals. Written with a pen.
Sounds fishy, you say? Indeed. Suspicious. Very suspicious.
I wonder what our man Alan Turing would make of this one, eh.
Well, lucky for him, a collective of Reddit sleuths have been at the forum to investigate the case of the big P.
One of the initial hypotheses suggested the 'P' indicated a home housing expensive pooches, so thieves (none specifically, just general thieves) would know where to go snooping.
Another said: “Very subtle Wordle clue - takes 5 days then you just rearrange them. Never right.”
And I must admit, that means nothing to me since I've never played Wordle and never will. Sue me.
But all the suggestions posted by Royal Mail outsiders fell far from the mark.
No, the 'P' has nothing to do with criminal codes or Wordle game quiz thingy-me-jiggs.
An undercover postie who had snuck into the Reddit forum could handle the guessing game no longer and stepped in with the surprise answer.
They said: “It's the postie's way of reminding themselves that when they come to post your letter there's also a parcel for you.
"That's so they don't post your letter then find out halfway down the street they forgot to knock and give you your parcel.
“Or sometimes they'll write P10 or something on the previous letter - that lets them know they have a parcel for next door (number 10) but no letter.”
It's an awfully boring answer to a question some of us anticipated to have an extraordinarily exciting result.
But there it is - no sneaky thieves anywhere to be seen.
Every day really is a school day.
Charlie Metcalfe