Last Friday, I visited the British Library in London.

'Better keep my eyes open', I said to myself, 'I bet this place is a
veritable hotbed for Researchers in the flesh.'

Eventually, my eyes lit upon a gorgeous young woman with long, red
hair. She returned my stare boldly and demanded, 'Are YOU
Probonopublico? THE Probonopublico?'

'How could you possibly know that?' I asked, suitably impressed.

She focused one eye on my cap. 'The name on your cap ….'

Her left eye zoomed in to my T-shirt. 'The name on your T-shirt …'

And she fixed her remaining eye on my rucksack. 'And the name on your
rucksack. Of course,' she hurriedly added, 'My advice is no substitute
for a visit to a psychiatrist, you know.'

'I know, I know', I mumbled, well and truly humbled, 'And may I enquire
your name?'

'My real name is a closely guarded secret, known only to my parents and
I am not allowed to reveal the name that I use for research purposes.
It's against the regs. Surely, you know that much?'

'OK, so can you tell me where you live?'

'Sorry', she replied, 'but that's another question, Why not put it up and
see if you can get an answer?'

'Why not?' I replied, 'It's got to be worth $2.50'.

'Except that NOBODY would answer a question like that for $2 ….'

'Not even for 5 Stars?'

So, here goes.

(By the way, I think that the beard may have been a giveaway. There
can't be too many researchers with a long red beard, surely?)

Gosh, now I'M intrigued.....particularly re: the red beard!

:) jem-ga

Gorgeous young woman with a red beard... sounds like me in disguise
sometimes... but I haven't been in England. ;)

Must have been my nemesis, punkfraud-ga.

I thought it was Jem . . . until the red beard part. Now, I'm intrigued!!

If she had a missing digit on one hand, it may have been
PinkyGarcia-ga.  On the other hand, it could also have been
QuipVanPinkle-ga.  She's been known to travel incognito from time to
time and she's a mistress of disguise...

Best regards,
journalist-ga

The red beard reminds me of my mental image of one of the best
Researchers, the elusive willie-ga:

http://games.activision.com/games/simpsons/images/characters_thumbnail_willie.gif

Wasn't me.

pafalafa-ga

(or was it....?)

I thought I knew exactly who it was, but then that third eye threw me off. 

-K~

I have found a suspect. I seem to recall a fellow researcher once
remarking they had once sat for the famous English painter, Lowry.
Trouble is I can't remember who said it.
Does this look like the researcher?
http://www.lowry.info/womanwithbeard.html
answerfinder-ga

Well done, Answer Finder, You've hit the bullseye!

But who is it?

Well, assuming that her name really is only known to her parents, that means:

1. No siblings
2. Not married (most likely, anyway)
3. Never attended school
4. Has no job

Are you sure it wasn't this lovely lass:

http://www.themakeupgallery.info/weird/beard/dw.htm

A little more on the blond than redheaded side of things, to be sure. 
But the lighting in the the British Library can be tricky, even on the
best of days...

Now, if you'd spied her at the beach...

http://netjunk.com/users/sideshowlew/percilla.jpg

Stephenvakil gave a precise description of most GARs, who are lonely,
bearded women, have no job, and attend nothing.

I doubt if the GAR you've met is really a female. As you stated
before, women are very good as supermarket check out clerks
<http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=113107>. Since it
wasn't a supermarket, but a library, I am pretty sure it was a man,
who disguised himself as a woman.

Since we already have a picture of Willie-ga, QED

But just to leave some place for doubt, here are two suspected GARs: 
http://images.chron.com/content/news/photos/02/02/22/zz.jpg

Many thanks to everyone for the marvellous insights.

I now realise that I actually saw several GARs at the British Library
last Friday but I dismissed several without appreciating their hidden
strengths.

There was the Scottish bagpipe-playing busker (Willie?); a young woman
in a school gym-slip selling Flora (Jem?); an American woman wearing a
stetson and cowboy boots (Pinky?); a German lady in lederhosen (Poly
Guru?) ...

Next time, I'll take my camera.

My beard -is- long, but it was never red....black once upon a tine,
but now gray. And when I busked (in the -very- distant past) it was
guitar, not bagpipes.

Must have been some other celt. ( Although my wife -is- a librarian,
and the red setter has a large bald patch on its back)

Willie, delurking only long enough to be leave a comment....too busy
for anything else. I could tell you, but I'd have to kill you. :)