JK ROWLING

Madeleine McCann was nearly 4 when she vanished in 2007 while her British family was on vacation in the town of Praia da Luz in the Algarve resort region of Portugal.

Warner Bros.

A plan by Scotland’s government to make it easier for people to change gender for legal purposes has sparked acrimonious debate both inside and outside of the Edinburgh parliament.

When many corners of the conservative media ecosystem turned on Donald Trump following his announcement of a 2024 presidential candidacy, Howard Polskin was one of the first to notice — and be surprised.

James Patterson is apologizing for saying that white male writers are being subjected to “just another of form of racism” during an interview with The Sunday Times in London.

The actor playing Harry Potter has been fired from the Broadway production of “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” following a complaint by a co-star about his conduct.

A cafe in Scotland's capital where author J.

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The longtime head of the children’s publishing giant Scholastic Inc. who presided over such bestsellers as J.

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Crown announced Tuesday that it had increased its initial print run from 3.4 million copies to 4.3 million. “A Promised Land,” the first of two planned volumes, was published Nov. 17 and sold nearly 890,000 copies just in its first day. Her "Becoming," published in 2018, has sold more than 10 million copies worldwide and is currently in the top 20 on Amazon.com. George W. Bush's “Decision Points” sold 775,000 copies its first week and Bill Clinton's “My Life” topped 1 million in eight days. The two presidential memoirs have now each sold between 3.5 and 4 million copies, totals that Obama's book should easily surpass.

“We are thrilled with the first day sales,” said David Drake, publisher of the Penguin Random House imprint Crown. As of midday Wednesday, “A Promised Land” was No. “So far it has been neck and neck with Michelle Obama's book,” he said. The New York Times' Jennifer Szalai wrote that the “most audacious thing" about “A Promised Land” is “the beaming portrait" of Obama on the cover. Obama's book is the highlight of publishing's holiday season and for some independent bookstores, the potential difference between remaining in business or closing.

LONDON Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling says she is returning an award from a human rights group linked to the Kennedy family after the president of the organization criticized her comments about transgender issues. Rowling's decision comes after Kerry Kennedy, the president of Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights and the late senator's daughter, published a statement expressing her profound disappointment with the author's comments. The statement incorrectly implied that I was transphobic, and that I am responsible for harm to trans people, Rowling said on her website. Kerry Kennedy joined the criticism this month when she published her statement on the website of RFK Human Rights. Kennedy claimed Rowling's attacks upon the transgender community" were a repudiation of her father's vision.

The Sun's defense relies on a total of 14 allegations by his ex-wife Amber Heard of Depp's violence. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)LONDON A #MeToo activist said in a court document released Friday that she was misquoted and misused by a British tabloid newspaper in an article that accused Johnny Depp of physically abusing his ex-wife, Amber Heard. I was not going public on behalf of #MeToo or myself, to criticize J.K. Rowlings decision to cast Mr. Depp, nor did I accuse Mr. Depp of hurting Amber Heard, about which I have no first-hand knowledge.Kendall also said she had heard several times that Heard was abusive to Depp. Depp, 57, and Heard, 34, met on the set of the 2011 comedy The Rum Diary and married in Los Angeles in February 2015. Romero said a friend of his was a big fan of Mr Depp and he was concerned about him not being able to play the guitar.

The letter comes amid a debate over so-called cancel culture where prominent people face attack for sharing controversial opinions. The forces of illiberalism are gaining strength throughout the world and have a powerful ally in Donald Trump, who represents a real threat to democracy, the letter said. But resistance must not be allowed to harden into its own brand of dogma or coercionwhich right-wing demagogues are already exploiting. In a series of tweets, Rowling said she supported transgender rights but did not believe in erasing the concept of biological sex. The letter criticized the state of public debate and the swift and severe retribution dealt out to any perceived wrongs.

FILE - In this Friday, Feb. 21, 2020 file photo, actor Johnny Depp arrives for the screening of the film Minamata during the 70th International Film Festival, Berlinale in Berlin, Germany. Heard alleges that Depp subjected her to a three-day ordeal of physical assaults while they were in the country after drinking and taking drugs. Depp is suing Heard for $50 million for allegedly defaming him in a Washington Post article about domestic abuse. Last week, judge Andrew Nicol ruled that Depp had breached the court order, but said it would not be just to throw out the actors claim. They argued that her testimony would be more reliable if she weren't present in court when Depp was being cross-examined.

LONDON The Sun newspaper said Friday it did not intend to glorify domestic violence by giving a platform to Harry Potter author J.K. Rowlings ex-husband just days after she revealed she had been a victim of domestic abuse. It also said it had a long history of campaigning against domestic violence. It was certainly not our intention to enable or glorify domestic abuse, our intention was to expose a perpetrators total lack of remorse.'' The article and the headline sparked outrage among campaigners who have long pushed the media to exercise care in reporting on domestic violence. Domestic abuse charity Refuge described the front-page story as being both irresponsible and disappointing.

LOS ANGELES Harry Potter" creator J.K. Rowling said she refuses to bow down" to criticism about her recent comments on transgender people. Rowling published a lengthy post on her blog website Wednesday in response to the backlash and her concerns over new trans activism." A Harry Potter fan group tweeted its disapproval of Rowlings post and encouraged followers to donate to a group that supports back transgender women. Redmayne, who starred in two Fantastic Beast" films of the Harry Potter prequel series, disagreed with Rowling's comments on Twitter. He joined Radcliffe who also disapproved of Rowlings thoughts on transgender identity.

GLAAD responded to Rowling by urging people to support organizations dedicated to helping black transgender men and women. "Transgender women are women," he continued. "Trans women are women," he tweeted. "Trans Black people & trans non-Black people are discriminated against every single day. Dumezweni played the role of Hermione in the stage play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, and Leung played Cho Chang in the Harry Potter films.

LOS ANGELES Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling is facing hefty backlash after she posted a series of tweets about transgender people. If sex isnt real, theres no same-sex attraction, she tweeted. If sex isnt real, the lived reality of women globally is erased. A Harry Potter fan group tweeted its disapproval of Rowlings post and encouraged followers to donate to a group that supports back transgender women. JK Rowling continues to align herself with an ideology which willfully distorts facts about gender identity and people who are trans, GLAAD tweeted.