time police n.

officers who regulate time travel or other time-related phenomena; (specif.) officers who travel through time to attempt to prevent the past from being changed; a (government) body responsible for time-related phenomena

SF Encyclopedia


Time Travel

  • [1948 H. B. Piper Police Operation in Astounding Science Fiction July 18/2 page image H. Beam Piper bibliography

    We have a monument, at Paratime Police Headquarters, in Dhergabar, bearing the names of our own personnel who didn’t make it back. It’s a large monument; over the past ten thousand years, it’s been inscribed with quite a few names.]

  • 1950 ‘P. Worth’ Typewriter from the Future in Amazing Stories Feb. 61/1 page image Rog Phillips bibliography

    The now you use is a time-point and moving at right angles to the time stream you call past and future, and also another point moving at right angles to it. If the time police find out about it you will not be here now in the other time.

  • 1953 C. M. Kornbluth Time Bum in Fantastic Jan.–Feb. 141/2 page image C. M. Kornbluth bibliography

    In the end the Time Police punished him for unauthorized time traveling. They had come back and got him, brought him back to his own time.

  • 1959 D. E. Westlake And Then He Went Away in Future Science Fiction June 91/1 page image Donald E. Westlake bibliography

    I am from the twenty fifth century. I am a policeman, until recently assigned to customs duty. I have just been promoted, and my job assignment changed to the Time Police.

  • 1960 J. G. Ballard Chronopolis in New Worlds Science Fiction (#95) June 71 J. G. Ballard bibliography

    Where did you get it from? Your parents? Don’t worry, the Time Police were disbanded years ago.

  • 1972 J. Sladek Steam-Driven Boy in H. Harrison Nova 2 124 page image John Sladek bibliography

    Since as time-police we have the only time-bikes around, the evidence is going to make us look bad.

  • 1996 T. Pratchett Johnny & the Bomb 16 Terry Pratchett bibliography

    I wouldn’t mind joining the police if they were time police. You’d go back and say, ‘Hey, are you Adolf Hitler?’ and when he said, ‘Achtung, that’s me, ja’…Kablooeee! With the pump-action shotgun. End of problem.

  • 1999 R. K. J. Killheffer Books in Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction Mar. 37/2 page image Robert K. J. Killheffer

    This isn’t the Time Police zooming in on antigrav thrusters.

  • 2000 N. Spinrad On Books in Asimov’s Science Fiction Oct.–Nov. 229/1 page image Norman Spinrad

    An oft-told tale, in which the time police of a self-appointed transtemporal authority…patrol the centuries and eons combating those who would tamper with history.

  • 2013 A. Scarrow Mayan Prophecy 42 page image Alex Scarrow bibliography

    ‘We were recruited by an agency to make sure things stay right…. To make sure any other troublesome buggers with time machines don’t go messing around and changing the course of history.’ Adam frowned. ‘You mean…like, sort of Time Police, or something?’

Research requirements

antedating 1950

Last modified 2022-11-01 13:51:45
In the compilation of some entries, HDSF has drawn extensively on corresponding entries in OED.