h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Eve Eel has much to answer for.

Unless one had DNA for three different sets of parents and three babies switched at birth, one wouldn't know who belonged to whom. And if one *did* know, why wait to rectify things? Once the knowledge comes to hand.

I am getting well and truly mixed up.

Not that that's a complaint.

The story so far:
Anne is the daughter of Eve Eel and a sperm donor who was an Olympic gold medallist who was assassinated when collecting the Nobel Peace Prize for resolving the conflict in Laurelstan, whose death reignited civil war, but as an embryo Anne was implanted in surrogate mother 1 and raised in the same orphanage as Agatha.

Agatha thought she was the daughter of two random parents who died in a speeding steamroller accident implanted in surrogate mother 2 but in fact she was the biological daughter of Ethel and Ernest Dreary but accidentally swapped at birth with Deirdre, and so was raised in the same orphanage as Anne.

Deirdre was raised as Ethel and Ernest Dreary's daughter but had been accidentally been swapped at birth with Agatha and so was really the biological daughter of the speeding steamroller victims. She is a dead librarian.

Dr Beeching has Anne and Agatha's DNA on his computer because he did the initial DNA tests at the animal testing lab before he was fired and had been given the DNA samples to match the daughters to the initial two sets of parents. He took his equipment to work for the police - but he doesn't know which daughter is which because Keith had labelled both girl's samples as 'A'.

Does this explain things?

<BB<

Yes. Thank you.

I didn't make the connection until now.

Of course most of that detail is unimportant - all you need to be aware of that there's sufficient baby swapping to satisfy the demands of a soap operetta.

<BB<

You are certainly right.

Not since G&S have I seen a tale where baby-switching was so important. (Little Buttercup switched Ralphe Rackstraw for the captain of the Pinafore when they were babies.

"A many years ago, when I was young and charming,
.....I practiced baby farming."]

But you can solve these switches without confessions if there's enough DNA to compare.



Maybe baby-switching will see a rebound in the arts?

I was aiming more for 'The Gondoliers' - of that there is no manner of doubt, no probable, possible shadow of doubt, no possible doubt whatever.

<BB<

I starred in a production of "Gondoliers" in sixth grade. I was Marco. I don't know what became of the guy who played Giuseppe.

Maybe he got babyswapped as well?

As first impressions go, this one seems to be of the lasting kind.