JK Rowling poses with cigar after Supreme Court decision on definition of a woman
JK Rowling marked the Supreme Court ruling over the definition of a woman yesterday with a cigarillo and drink on a terrace overlooking the sea.
The author, considered a leader of the gender critical movement that saw yesterday’s announcement as a crucial victory, posted the picture to her X account.
Her allies popped champagne outside the court yesterday morning after judge Lord Hodge said the term ‘woman’ in the Equality Act 2010 should be defined according to biological sex assigned at birth.
That definition means trans people, who identify as a different gender from the one they were assigned when they were born, can now be blocked from accessing designated single-sex spaces.
In an interview this morning, head of the Equality and Human Rights Commission Baroness Kishwer Falkner said trans women would no longer be welcome in women’s bathrooms or changing rooms.
And the British Transport Police has announced searches of trans women in custody will now be carried out by male officers.
In her social media post, Rowling wrote: ‘I love it when a plan comes together.’
I love it when a plan comes together.#SupremeCourt #WomensRights pic.twitter.com/agOkWmhPgb
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) April 16, 2025
After some users on the site suggested she was smoking cannabis in the photo, she added: ‘To those celebrating the fact that I’m smoking a blunt: it’s a cigar.’
The writer added, in a dig at the trans community: ‘Even if it decided to identify as a blunt for the purposes of this celebration, it would remain objectively, provably and demonstratively a cigar.’
Rowling’s unapologetic embrace of gender critical views has led to intense criticism from trans people and those who support their rights.
This controversy has extended to other projects she is involved with, including the upcoming Harry Potter TV series on which she will serve as an executive producer.
Hot Fuzz star Nick Frost faced backlash from Instagram users earlier this week after it was announced he would star as Rubeus Hagrid in the show.
Rowling was among the financial backers of For Women Scotland, the campaign group behind the court case that ultimately led to the Supreme Court’s decision.