# So what IS Mary Poppins? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 4, 2014, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-is-mary-poppins/697502 "2014-09-04T17:39:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2014, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-is-mary-poppins/697502/1 "2014-09-04T17:39:47Z")
I’ve seen the musical play and the movie, but I’ve never read the books. Is it ever revealed what sort of being Mary Poppins is? She obviously has powers, but is far from omnipotent, so I’d assume she’s some kind of witch. OTOH, she blends in perfectly with humans and seems to relate to them. Is it discussed where she came from (a Hogsmeade type place, perhaps)? Or if Bert is what she is? Straight answer or conjecture welcome. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2014, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-is-mary-poppins/697502/2 "2014-09-04T17:43:47Z")
She’s a witch. Burn her! ---
**Author:** ![vd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b19c9b/32.png) [@vd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vd)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2014, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-is-mary-poppins/697502/3 "2014-09-04T17:47:52Z")
The internet consensus seems to be Time Lord. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2014, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-is-mary-poppins/697502/4 "2014-09-04T17:48:24Z")
She’s a nanny. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2014, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-is-mary-poppins/697502/5 "2014-09-04T17:53:04Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > She’s a nanny. Exactly. She’s Mary Poppins. No further explanation is needed or offered. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2014, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-is-mary-poppins/697502/6 "2014-09-04T17:55:31Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > She’s a nanny. NILF. ---
**Author:** ![phouka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c5a1d2/32.png) [@phouka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phouka)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2014, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-is-mary-poppins/697502/7 "2014-09-04T18:01:24Z")
My theory is that she’s a dream, escaped from Oneiros’s realm during his century long absence. ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2014, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-is-mary-poppins/697502/8 "2014-09-04T18:02:06Z")
I’m gonna go with Time Lord too, especially given the new “Missy” character in the latest series. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2014, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-is-mary-poppins/697502/9 "2014-09-04T18:05:41Z")
[Practically perfect in every way.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBXPKA6i4Zg) ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2014, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-is-mary-poppins/697502/10 "2014-09-04T18:11:51Z")
I don’t believe P.L. Travers saw fit to explicate her origins very much. I believe at one point one of the magical creatures they meet addresses her as a daughter of the Sun although whether that was meant to be literal or not is not clear. As it is, you can make up pretty much any origin you like for her as there’s very little official canon to contradict you. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2014, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-is-mary-poppins/697502/11 "2014-09-04T18:16:09Z")
If we’re going to go with ‘Standard TV Tropes Insane Speculation’, ‘an incarnation of Haruhi Suzumiya’ fits her far better than ‘Time Lord’. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2014, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-is-mary-poppins/697502/12 "2014-09-04T18:16:39Z")
Beat me to it, **QuickSilver**. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2014, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-is-mary-poppins/697502/13 "2014-09-04T19:03:59Z")
She’s someone there to save Mr. Banks, according the P.L. Travers in the **Saving Mr. Banks** movie about the making of Disney’s **Mary Poppins**. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Q](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/898d66/32.png) [@Johnny\_Q](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Q)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2014, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-is-mary-poppins/697502/14 "2014-09-04T19:52:55Z")
You don’t want to know. _(shudder)_ You _really_ don’t want to know… ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2014, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-is-mary-poppins/697502/15 "2014-09-04T20:08:30Z")
the Green Hornet was descended from the Lone Ranger. both strong hero of different nature. if you go deep into the original writings of Mary Poppins you will find she descended from Xena. ---
**Author:** ![August\_West](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/august_west/32/18069_2.png) [@August\_West](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/August_West)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2014, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-is-mary-poppins/697502/16 "2014-09-04T21:03:15Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > She’s a witch. Burn her! And how do you know she’s a witch? ---
**Author:** ![Flywheel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Flywheel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flywheel)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2014, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-is-mary-poppins/697502/17 "2014-09-04T21:12:18Z")
Mr. Banks’ ex-wife in drag. ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2014, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-is-mary-poppins/697502/18 "2014-09-04T21:37:58Z")
Sounds like this calls for a rebooted, gritty origin story. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2014, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-is-mary-poppins/697502/19 "2014-09-04T21:43:13Z")
The local 'shroom dealer. Uses the nanny business as a front. Doses up the brats to make them easier to handle and so they won’t rat her out. Bert is one of her regular customers. His brain is so fried he thinks he’s a Cockney instead of an American. ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2014, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-is-mary-poppins/697502/20 "2014-09-04T21:44:19Z")
She turned me into a newt. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-is-mary-poppins/697502.md?page=2)