Overview

• Stephen Fry told The Show People podcast that Rowling appeared to have been “radicalised by TERFs” and called her stance on transgender women a “lost cause.”
• Rowling replied on X by rejecting any friendship with Fry, writing that it is a mistake to assume acquaintances were ever friends.
• Fry, who narrated all seven Harry Potter audiobooks, had previously defended Rowling against LGBT+ criticism but said her inflammatory comments left him “angry” and “saddened.”
• Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint have publicly distanced themselves from Rowling’s views on gender identity, joining Fry in their criticism.
• Rowling’s role as a leading voice in the UK’s transgender debate was bolstered by her celebration of the Supreme Court’s ruling that transgender women are not legally women.