Sir Stephen Fry has spoken out against Harry Potter author JK Rowling for being radicalised by TERFs (trans-exclusionary radical feminists).
The comedian and actor, 67, famously narrated the Harry Potter book series and in 2022 stood by Rowling despite her ‘upsetting’ views.
Now, years on from this comment, Fry has seemingly had a change of heart as he criticised the author publicly in a live recording of the podcast The Show People in Clapham.
‘She has been radicalised, I fear, and it may be she has been radicalised by TERFs, but also by the vitriol that is thrown at her,’ he told host Andrew Keates at the live event attended by the MailOnline.
‘It is unhelpful and only hardens her and will only continue to harden her, I am afraid.’
He added that she is a ‘lost cause’.
‘I am not saying that she should not be called out when she says things that are really cruel, wrong and mocking. She seems to be a lost cause for us.’
The Harry Potter author upset and angered many people as she celebrated the Supreme Court ruling on sex earlier this year in May.
The writer posed with a cigarillo in her mouth and a drink in her hand on her yacht in the Caribbean Sea as she toasted the ruling: ‘I love it when a plan comes together.’
The ruling saw Lord Hodge say the term ‘woman’ in the Equality Act 2010 should be defined according to biological sex assigned at birth.
That definition means trans people can now be blocked from accessing designated single-sex spaces.
Fry suggested that her recent comments changed his previous stance: ‘She started to make these peculiar statements and had very strong, difficult views. She seemed to wake up or kick a hornet’s nest of transphobia, which has been entirely destructive.
‘I disagree profoundly with her on this subject. I am angry she does not disavow some of the more revolting and truly horrible, destructive violently destructive things that people say. She does not attack those at all.
‘She says things that are inflammatory and contemptuous, mocking and add to a terribly distressing time for trans people.’
He emphatically stated that he was ‘happy to go on the record’ and say he was ‘really angry’ about her comments.
He added that he was ‘sorry because I always liked her company’ and that he found her ‘charming, funny, and interesting’.
In 2022, Fry said on the Beeb Watch podcast: ‘She is a friend of mine and I have trans friends and intersex friends who are deeply upset by her.
‘That is a circle I have to square personally.’
‘I know that JK Rowling doesn’t want to see trans people bullied, alienated, shut out of society, made to feel ashamed, guilty, laughed at, all those things.
He added that he wanted to stay firmly on the fence when it came to this debate.
‘It is not an argument I want to get involved in because it is upsetting to both sides and I would wish them both to retreat and to consider that is possible for trans people to live full, accepted lives according to their terms in society, and for women to have all the rights and dignities they demand.’
His recent comments show he is no longer comfortable sitting on the fence, and Fry isn’t the only celebrity who has worked with Rowling and spoken out against her TERF views.
In response to Rowling’s initial comments about gender in 2020, Emma Watson shared her support for the transgender community.
The actress who played Hermione in the Harry Potter series said on social media: ‘Trans people are who they say they are and deserve to live their lives without being constantly questioned or told they aren’t who they say they are.
‘I want my trans followers to know that I and so many other people around the world see you, respect you and love you for who you are.’
In 2020, Daniel Radcliffe, who played Harry Potter in the film series, commented: ‘ ‘As someone who has been honoured to work with and continues to contribute to The Trevor Project for the last decade, and just as a human being, I feel compelled to say something at this moment.
‘Transgender women are women. Any statement to the contrary erases the identity and dignity of transgender people and goes against all advice given by professional health care associations who have far more expertise on this subject matter than either Jo or I,’ he said in the lengthy post.
Tom Felton, who played Draco Malfoy in the film series, was criticised recently when he refused to take a stance on Rowling as he signed on to reprise his character in the Potter stage play The Cursed Child.
When asked directly whether the controversy around JK Rowling’s divisive position on the trans community had impacted his work with the franchise, Felton responded, ‘I can’t say it does, I’m not really that attuned to it.’
He added: ‘I have not seen anything bring the world together more than Potter. She’s responsible for that, so I’m incredibly grateful.’
Metro reached out to JK Rowling’s representatives, who declined to comment.
Got a story?
If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@metro.co.uk, calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.