I don't think you would be "illegal" in France just because your passport is not in your hands. It's still a valid passport and if there is a record of your entry, then you are legal. But as I recall there is NO passport check between UK and France unless arriving by air. I've done a few Ferry runs ... no passport required going either way IIRC. Ride your bike!!!
Dunno about UK, but in USA I was advised by US state dept. to use my expired passport (which I carry when on the road) in case my current passport was stolen or lost.
It's still works as basic I.D. though not valid for passing borders without background checks. If anyone in authority wants to check further, they can.
Just because my passport is stolen does not mean I am not a valid passport holder, I am, and the Us State Dept. can validate that in 10 seconds with a computer check.
I'm sure Brit govt. (and French) have something similar as Passports are lost, stolen and misplaced dozens a month I would think.
Good luck. We have to pay MORE to speed up the re-newal process. Typical.
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