runawaynun

At some point this week, I will have an actual write-up about WisCon. But, inspired by the epic fail that was Doctor Who's treatment of Harriet Jones, chaila and I have expanded our universe of awesome to create a past division of it, involving the ladies of Downton.

• Isobel Crawley is elected Prime Minister of Great Britain. She's an amazing Prime Minister and is constantly asking, "How can I help?" She makes health care available for all and creates several programs that help women, children and wounded war vets. She also repeals all laws that do not allow women to inherit, thus making Mary the heir of Downton. Depending on how much we want to change history, Isobel relieves Germany of its war reparations, at least to Great Britain.
  
  
• Mrs. Hughes is Isobel's Chief of Staff and runs her office and administration just as efficiently as she runs Downton. She's quite happy with the challenge and can stare down rebellious MPs just as she can maids. Ethel is Mrs. Hughes' secretary. She's much happier now that she's no longer in service and her challenging job keeps her mostly out of trouble. Although, every once in awhile, she causes Mrs. Hughes distress.
  
  
• Gwen is Isobel's executive secretary. She is loyal and competent, and although Isobel keeps asking her if she'd like a higher position, Gwen says that she is completely happy doing what she does. Gwen thinks it's funny that Isobel doesn't realize how important her job is but she is so happy that Isobel hired her.
  
  
• Mary is Isobel's press liaison. Mary is cool under fire and remarkably ahead of her time as spinning the stories. She also quite enjoys putting Richard Carlisle in his place. (Richard is torn between his hurt from how Mary treated him and his ambition to have such a great source so close to the Prime Minister.) Anna works as Mary's assistant and finds that she is quite well suited for things other than being a housemaid.
  
  
• Lavinia is NOT DEAD and is Isobel's party liaison, overcoming the scandal from her uncle. She is able to keep the fractious party caucus together to vote for several of Isobel's more controversial measures, although sometimes she does need Mrs. Hughes' help. She and Mary are also totally secretly married, although the entire family knows.
  
  
• Edith is in charge of veterans' affairs and makes sure that institutions that care for the wounded in both body and mind are run well and free of abuse. She also sometimes convinces Isobel to let her drive the Prime Minister's car.
  
  
• Sybil is Isobel's policy director and works very closely with Isobel and Lavinia to pass several reforms through Parliament. She also remains very active in the women's movement. Her child is raised basically collectively by the various women she works with.
  
  
• Cora is in charge of the social affairs of the Prime Minister. She makes sure every ceremony runs smoothly and placates egos and/or more conservative members of society that ruffled. She's very happy to be challenged in this way and many times her good graces have saved moments when Isobel's brash style have caused tension within the Party and/or with other heads of state.
  
  
• Miss O'Brien is in charge of political opposition intelligence. Although she may seem like she's Cora's assistant, she's in correspondence with several secretaries and maids of both the Opposition and several of the more rebellious members of the Party. She uses the information gleaned to make MPs more compliant or to feed the press juicy stories. She does this not out of any loyalty to Isobel but because of her devotion to Cora.
  
  
• The men of Downton. Both Bates and Branson are dead. The manor becomes that Manor of Manpain in which Robert, Matthew and Mr. Carson have manpain. Sometimes when the manpain becomes too much, they telephone the women in London and the women tell them to go to bed. During the Season, they come and visit. (Oh, and we gave Thomas a boyfriend and more responsibility to make him happy.)

The universe of awesome > canon and real life