No surprise: JK Rowling ‘is approaching billionaire status’

A graphic composite with a photo of JK Rowling with a doctor writing notes in the background, and a stripe with the colours of the trans Pride flag

JK Rowling has been repeatedly criticised for her transgender comments. (Getty)

Controversial author JK Rowling is well on her way to becoming a billionaire, according to The Sunday Times Rich List.

Rowling’s comments about trans people in recent years don’t seem to have affected her wallet, given she’s now in eighth place on the Sunday Times Rich List for Scotland, which is due to be published this weekend, and is “approaching billionaire status”.

The writer’s bank account has swelled by £70 million ($88.6 million) in the past year, and she is now said to be worth £945 million (close to $1.2 billion), according to The Herald.

Harry Potter author JK Rowling in front of trans Pride flag colours

JK Rowling’s books have swelled her bank balance again this year, making her richer than racing car driver Lewis Hamilton, and the owners of both Hays Travel and Trailfinders, as well as Elton John and David and Victoria Beckham. (Getty)

In January, the Harry Potter author was named alongside musician Ed Sheeran in The Sunday Times’ list of highest UK tax payers.The following month she reportedly donated £70,000 (£88,600) to an anti-trans group’s long-running battle over the legal definition of the word “woman”.

Over the past few years Rowling has gone from one of the world’s favourite writers – she is believed to have sold more than 600 million copies of the Potter series of books – to one of the most divisive figures in the UK because of her comments on trans people.

Last month, she opposed Scotland’s new anti-hate-crime legislation which “modernises, consolidates and extends” existing legislation.

Rowling, who also writes crime fiction under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith, was first criticised in 2019 when she came out in support of “gender-critical” campaigner Maya Forstater, who was then in a legal battle with her former employer after being fired for expressing anti-trans views.

Danielk Radcliffe at a red carpet event. Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe has opposed Rowling’s transgender views. (Getty)
Despite her past insistence that she “knows and loves” trans people, Rowling published a lengthy post on her website, sharing it on Twitter with the caption “TERF wars”, and has frequently tweeted to criticise inclusive language and to hit out at trans rights.In March, Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe made a rare comment on Rowling’s views on trans people after she suggested she would not forgive him for his support of the transgender community.