diff --git a/src/stores/OwnProfileStore.ts b/src/stores/OwnProfileStore.ts
index 8983380fec..15884b8ad6 100644
--- a/src/stores/OwnProfileStore.ts
+++ b/src/stores/OwnProfileStore.ts
@@ -28,13 +28,22 @@ interface IState {
     avatarUrl?: string;
 }
 
+const KEY_DISPLAY_NAME = "mx_profile_displayname";
+const KEY_AVATAR_URL = "mx_profile_avatar_url";
+
 export class OwnProfileStore extends AsyncStoreWithClient<IState> {
     private static internalInstance = new OwnProfileStore();
 
     private monitoredUser: User;
 
     private constructor() {
-        super(defaultDispatcher, {});
+        // seed from localstorage because otherwise we won't get these values until a whole network
+        // round-trip after the client is ready, and we often load widgets in that time, and we'd
+        // and up passing them an incorrect display name
+        super(defaultDispatcher, {
+            displayName: window.localStorage.getItem(KEY_DISPLAY_NAME),
+            avatarUrl: window.localStorage.getItem(KEY_AVATAR_URL),
+        });
     }
 
     public static get instance(): OwnProfileStore {
@@ -73,7 +82,11 @@ export class OwnProfileStore extends AsyncStoreWithClient<IState> {
     public getHttpAvatarUrl(size = 0): string {
         if (!this.avatarMxc) return null;
         const adjustedSize = size > 1 ? size : undefined; // don't let negatives or zero through
-        return this.matrixClient.mxcUrlToHttp(this.avatarMxc, adjustedSize, adjustedSize);
+
+        // XXX: We use MatrixClientPeg here rather than this.matrixClient because otherwise we'll
+        // race because our data stores aren't set up consistently enough that this will all be
+        // initialised with a store before these getter methods are called.
+        return MatrixClientPeg.get().mxcUrlToHttp(this.avatarMxc, adjustedSize, adjustedSize);
     }
 
     protected async onNotReady() {
@@ -110,6 +123,8 @@ export class OwnProfileStore extends AsyncStoreWithClient<IState> {
         // We specifically do not use the User object we stored for profile info as it
         // could easily be wrong (such as per-room instead of global profile).
         const profileInfo = await this.matrixClient.getProfileInfo(this.matrixClient.getUserId());
+        if (profileInfo.displayname) window.localStorage.setItem(KEY_DISPLAY_NAME, profileInfo.displayname);
+        if (profileInfo.avatar_url) window.localStorage.setItem(KEY_AVATAR_URL, profileInfo.avatar_url);
         await this.updateState({displayName: profileInfo.displayname, avatarUrl: profileInfo.avatar_url});
     };