Green Ink: The Colour of Eccentrics and Spooks

Not being British, I was fascinated a while back to learn that green ink is considered the medium of the lunatic fringe in the UK.

That little bit of lore became even more interesting recently when I heard that it is a long and continuing tradition for the head of the British Secret Intelligence Service to sign all documents in green ink.

1. MI6 Secret Service

The oddness of the idea that green ink bears so much meaning and the ironic connection between the psychologically challenged and the professionally paranoid bore more investigation. How exactly did the color green come to have such negative significance to the British?

No one seems to be able to say for sure which came first, but it appears that the tradition of the SIS – also known as MI6 – using green ink was established before the color became associated with nutty behavior.

In 1909, Mansfield Cummings became the first head of MI6 and fell into the habit of signing all of his documents with the letter “C,” always written in green ink. There is some speculation that this was a carryover from his days in the armed services, where senior officers supposedly used green ink.

Sir Mansfield Cummings

For whatever reason, it became a tradition for the UK’s chief spy both to use green ink and to sign only as “C.” The green ink practice continues to this day, and is briefly discussed in the BBC radio program “MI6 – A Century in the Shadows.”

2. The Green Ink Brigade

Meanwhile, journalists in the UK frequently refer to the crazy letters they receive from readers as coming from the “green ink brigade.” The Guardian even goes so far as to instruct readers to avoid using green ink if they write letters to the editor.

The general consensus seems to be that the term comes from the fact that many of the nuttier letters that journalists receive are written in bright colors, or with words underlined heavily with bright inks.

As one Guardian writer put it several years ago, “Few who have worked in newspaper offices open letters addressed in green ink without trepidation, knowing the contents are likely to be some diatribe in favor of site value rating, or against fluoridation, or perhaps about bimetallism, if people still care about that.”

3. History of the Green Ink Designation

Michael Quinion, who runs the World Wide Words site, tried to dig into the history of the green ink designation. While he didn’t discover any definitive origin for the term as applied to eccentrics, he did turn up several interesting early uses.

World Wide Words

The first, he said, came from the 1953 satire by Kingsley Amis called “Lucky Jim.” In it, the main character receives a dubious letter “ill-written in green ink.” Then, Carl Sagan also mentioned green ink 20 years later in his book, “The Cosmic Connection.

According to Quinion, Sagan described a letter in this way:

“There came in the post an eighty-five-page handwritten letter, written in green ball-point ink, from a gentleman in a mental hospital in Ottawa. He had read a report in a local newspaper that I had thought it possible that life exists on other planets; he wished to reassure me that I was entirely correct in this supposition, as he knew from his own personal knowledge.”

Quinion also documents several instances in the ’80s and ’90s of British newspapers – including the Independent and the News Statesman – using the term to describe actions or correspondence that seemed less-than-sane. He offered this note from a 1985 article in the Guardian:

“The expression is the more-or-less affectionate description given by journalists and politicians to the people who write them eccentric letters, often in block capitals and frequently underlined in multicoloured inks. For some reason I have never heard satisfactorily explained, the most obsessive of these correspondents seem to prefer green.”

How it all got started it still a mystery. However, it’s not uncommon for paranoids in the US to have all sorts of crazy fantasies involving the CIA or aliens, or maybe both working together. Given that, you have to wonder if the knowledge that the chief of MI6 uses green ink hasn’t fuelled at least a few lunatics’ imaginations, to the point that they, too, began writing in green ink as a way to give themselves more authority.

Whatever the origin, it appears that cranks now are moving on from green ink to angry anonymous comments left online, leading Victoria Coren, writing in The Observer, to lament, “Why does nobody use the post anymore? Facebook threats, abusive calls: I miss the old-fashioned hate mail of yesteryear. I haven’t seen green ink for ages.”

4. Schools Moving Away From Red Ink

It’s even showing up in British schools, as teachers move away from using red ink to mark incorrect papers. The former headmaster and Telegraph contributor Peter Dix, for one, is not a fan of the practice of using green ink in schools.

“The green ink is a worthy but unnecessary attempt by an older generation of teachers to get away from the negative and sometimes sarcastic marking they suffered in school, which of course was always done in red. Today’s children know nothing of this; they are just as likely to associate green with frogs and sprouts, and red with Father Christmas and tomato sauce.”

5. Green Ink Pen Recommendations:

There are some good green ink ballpoint pens around, but the gel ink and rollerballs are a lot smoother to write with and have denser or more vibrant colors. These are a few of my favorites to help you on your journey of green ink discovery & join the rest of us eccentrics in the lunatic fringe. You may also like to see what the Top 5 Green Ink Pens are.

Pentel Energel XM BL77 Ink Gel Pen

Pentel XM Gel Pen Green

These are one of my all-time favorite pens smooth writing, nice vibrant colors and quick-drying which is great for left-handers. I prefer pens with a wider barrel when holding this pen it feels quite nicely balanced & the rubber grip is quite comfortable.

Check Prices and Reviews on Amazon

Pentel EnerGel-X BL107 Ink Gel Pen

Pentel EnerGel X BL107 Green

This uses the same ink as the Energel Deluxe RTX making it a smooth writer with vibrant ink color, the main difference is that it perhaps looks more modern with its green colored translucent barrel & rubber grip.

Check Prices and Reviews on Amazon

Pilot G2 07 Ink Gel Pen

Pilot G207 Gel Pen Green

Another one of my go-to pens is the Pilot G2 07 probably one of the most famous pens there is and it just feels like it was made to be held to write with. The gel ink is perhaps a bit denser than the Pentels but again it is a very smooth writer.

Check Prices and Reviews on Amazon

Pilot Precise V5 RT Liquid Ink Rollerball Pen

Pilot Precise V5 RT Green Liquid Ink Rollerball Pen

The free-flowing liquid ink from these pens makes them an absolute pleasure to write with and it is a nice vibrant color. However, it does take longer to dry so perhaps not the best choice for left-handed writers.

Check Prices and Reviews on Amazon

Pilot Frixion Clicker Erasable Ink

Pilot Frixion Clicker 07mm Green

Pilot Frixion is the best erasable pen ever made, seriously nothing else comes close. They may not be as smoother a writer like some of the other pens in this list. But if you like green ink and doing crosswords and puzzles or just want to be able to correct your mistakes you can’t go far wrong.

Check Prices and Reviews on Amazon

Uni-Ball Jetstream SXN-150 Green Ink Gel Pen

Uni Ball Jetstream SXN 150 Green

A smooth writing gel pen with superfast drying ink these are a firm favorite with left-handed writers. The lime green ink is a nice subtler shade of green. Again it quite a modern-looking pen with a green colored barrel, transparent window, and rubber grip.

Check Prices and Reviews on Amazon

And who doesn’t get bored sometimes with plain old blue or black?

But you tell me, now, readers – what do you know about the green ink brigade, and does the lore keep you from using green in your correspondence?

You May Also Like: Ballpoint, Rollerball, or Gel: Which Pen is Best for You?

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Tony Bridges

As a seasoned journalist and freelance writer, I've spent over three decades telling stories and exploring the world through the written word. With a passion for writing instruments, I found my niche at The Pen Vibe, a blog that shares our collective fascination with pens, pencils, and other tools that have shaped the art of writing.

31 thoughts on “Green Ink: The Colour of Eccentrics and Spooks”

    • Just buy a fountain pen of any reputable brand and fill it with green ink, of which many choices are available in bottles or most major brands have refill cartridges available in green.

      Reply
  1. Re: lunatic fringe.
    The hacks at the Guardian and its sister paper The Observer, whom you refer to more than once, are verified quantified and certified loons themselves. Known for “getting it profoundly wrong” on every major political event since its early Manchester days, a stranger mix of loons and cupcakes you will never meet.

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    • Thanks for the comment I was not aware that the word spook could be used as a racial slur and it is not my intention to offend anyone.

      The word spook is used in the context of this post to describe people who are working for the British Intelligence Service. It is a commonly used phrase in the UK and there was a popular TV drama series called Spooks based around MI5.

      Reply
      • Let’s not be to pedantic with regard to what is and what isn’t a racial slur. In the context of this blog, the term spook is indeed a commonly known, understood and accepted term to refer to a spy in the British Secret Intelligence Services as the author has kindly explained.
        There was also a TV show in britain called ‘Spooks’ – https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006mf4b/episodes/guide

        Midnight Indigo, a well written article thank you, Shaniqua you are wrong here.

        …I am black .

        Reply
  2. Weird. I had to look up the meaning of this green ink reference after coming across it in a book. I had never been aware of its association with lunatics. This is most interesting to me, and a bit enlightening, because of my own experience with green ink. Years ago I found a green ink pen and it became my favorite pen for writing in my journal. At some point I lost it and I wanted another. I didn’t want to just buy one though. Finding things has special meaning to me. I randomly decided to put God to the test and prayed that if he exists, provide evidence to me and put another Pilot G2 green pen in my path to find. I had been struggling in my faith and this would be the test. Well, I never did find one, but I did find a store selling them and bought one- reasoning to myself that God doesn’t want me to be passive and wait for him to do things for me but go out and make them happen on my own. A cop out, I know, but there it is. I have that pen still and it is my favorite. Now, years later I come across this reference about green ink and crazies in a book about quantum computing which leads me to this blog which has a picture of my very pen in it! It all makes sense now. I’m a lunatic!

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  3. for me in college…as a student

    Black Ink = Conformist

    Green Ink = Non Conformist [and i love green ink…i’m one of the few or ONLY student using green]

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  4. I have insisted on using green ink for the past 15years, initially as I decided one day that it looks better than boring old blue or black. Over time it pleased me that all of my circle associated it with me and I like the idea that I can send cards, notes etc.. and only use icons in green ink and folk would automatically know it is from moi! It bothers me somewhat that it is not so much a fringe thing anymore as using green ink is gaining popularity. In an ideal world I would be a dictator and ban anyone apart from myself using it!! Only kidding! but yes, I am English, am considered eccentric- I know so too. love all things clandestine and am a certified schitzophrenic. Take from this what you will!

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  5. I’m a hospital pharmacist and I hate the use of green ink. It smacks too much of the teachers pen or the “pharmacy police” I like being subversive and writing with my black pen!

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  6. The activists need to write with invisible ink, too many nuts in the USA also. Must be some profit motive involved.
    In Japan, orange ink is used instead of red. Granted, red can be harsh with children especially when they make fun of each other etc. better teaching and talking to children, “not scolding”
    talking would help the learning process without all the shame and finger pointing.
    Thank you,
    Keith

    Reply
  7. accountants – and especially auditors – always use green ink to indicate that they have verified a financial entry. As this activity would seem to be pretty boring, maybe they seek to inject some excitement into their lives by writing ‘odd’ letters to newspapers, and forget to put their green pens down?

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  8. E.M. Forster wrote the first drafts of his novel “A Passage to India” in green ink, though I do not know why. One the most sympathetic characters in it, Dr Aziz, is a Moslem. “I do like Islam,” wrote Forster somewhere in his diary account of his time in India. Could that have been a connection? Or was it simply that it was a different colour?

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  9. To be boring and prosaic if blue and black are too conventional and red is the hated teacher’s pen then green is the next fairly easily available colour.
    I’m a teacher and I still use red because it stands out. I don’t like pupils using it because it is difficult to read in large blocks whereas I’m only making comments which is also why I wouldn’t use red or green biro for a letter. Pharmacists probably use green for the similar reasons – it makes it clear which are their notes and which are the doctors’ – and because it is the medical colour. The cross used to indicate a pharmacy is green, likewise first aid boxes. In banks I think red still has a particular meaning!
    I usually insist on blue or black for exams having spent far too long trying to decipher a paper in pearlescent pastel pink ink and going cross eyed.
    I’m old fashioned and like writing with a fountain pen and also use lots of different coloured inks when I can get them, often dark purple but greens are in there too. Ask most of my classes and they’ll tell you I’m definitely mad though!

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  10. I don’t think senior executive can use green ink only. It can be used by anybody who loves green. Green means the symbol of leaves & all kind of greenness.

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  11. Until the end of the 1980s, account numbers were always checked and initialled in green ink in English banks. I’ll fetch my anorak.

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  12. I work in a hospital. All our pharmacists write in green in, the ward pharmacist is particularly pedantry and a little unhinged. It always makes me giggle when I read her green ink comments on drug charts etc…

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  13. I use green ink with custom-engraved stationery, where the engraving (a picture of our house, surrounded by greenery — that’s why I selected the engraving color) is in green. The ink and the engraving match. I did not intend anything other than matching the color of the trees and hedges.

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  14. I finally know what it means to write or have letters written in green. Because before today i had no idea what it meant. Because looking back a while ago i saw a screen printed shirt that said “write it in green” and the font was a green color. and now i understand what that shirt means now.

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  15. it probably started in India during the Raj occupation by the British.

    Green is sacred to Hindu’s and particulrlly to Moslems. C.

    Reply
  16. I worked in book publication in the 70’s in those days pre computer age. It was known that green ink was used by the printers on manuscripts, galleys and proofs, where as designer and editorial marks were in red. Personally I don’t see any harm in green ink, purple, pink or any other colour!

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  17. I don’t belong to any elite group of spies, and I likewise am not a hospital pharmacist, but I will forever stick to green ink and my1.5 mm or more calligraphy nib, if that’s lunacy let alone just a touch, I will still do it

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  18. I have been anxiously searching for a green pilot ink pen as this is my preferred pen of choice when writing in my diary- was getting frustrated as could find one nowhere I happened across this article which I read much to my amusement – like previous contributors. I may well agree that I could be considered eccentric!! I now know where to find the chosen pen though ha,

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  19. Lots of packs of pens in the UK come with 1 blue, 1 black, 1 red and 1 green pen.

    Most people avoid using the red or green for correspondence, but I expect that those less tied to social convention would be unconcerned by this, and that this would correlate somewhat with mental health problems.

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  20. Thanks for the fab write-up. My cartoon (character) on the home white board has just been given a “lunatic fringe”.

    We’re only in our thirties but have been talking for years about writing complaining letters to the press and signing them Major Harumph. Might have to stop talking and actually do it – in Green Ink lol

    Signed,
    The nUtty household

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  21. I had known about the Head of the Intelligence Service using green ink, but was unaware of any negative (or positive!) association with green inks.

    Personally I use a fountain pen with a rainbow of coloured inks – several of them green. The worst I have ever heard is that my writing habits are a little excentric – although I think that might be because I write with a fountain pen. Just because some people might think I am a little crazy isn’t going to stop me using greens. Actually, if the Guardian says green ink shouldn’t be used in letters to the editor – that to me seems like a great reason to use green ink.

    As for teachers using green as it isn’t as harsh as red….well, another to add to the list of reasons why we home school!

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  22. Re Green ink did you realise that most of our schools are now having to use green ink as it is not as harsh to the children when marking the work

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  23. I love using green ink – and I’ve never written a letter of complaint to anyone. I like the implication of slight nuttiness though.

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  24. I feel terribly cheated at not knowing this about green ink. If I’d known, I’d have been deliberately using green ink for years.

    …I do, however, do a large portion of my grading tasks in green ink, so that probably translates to another certain kind of madness. It’s less to avoid the negative stigma and more because I like the color better, but I’m sure that my students find my grammatically relevant puns in the margins to be a bit off.

    Reply

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