J. K. Rowling

J. K. Rowling is the author of the best-selling Harry Potter series of books, enjoyed by millions of children and adults around the world.  The first, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, was published in 1997, with the seventh and final book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, published ten years later, in 2007.  Each book has broken sales records, with the series to date having sold more than 400 million copies worldwide, being distributed in over 200 territories and translated into 69 languages, as well as being turned into blockbuster films. Additionally, J.K. Rowling has written two small volumes, which appear as the titles of Harry's school books within the novels.  Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Themand Quidditch Through the Ages were published in March 2001 in aid of Comic Relief.

In December 2008, The Tales of Beedle the Bard was published, raising millions for The Children's High Level Group, which aims to make life better for young people in care, in Europe and, ultimately, all over the world.

As well as an OBE for services to children's literature, J.K. Rowling is the recipient of numerous awards and honorary degrees, including Spain's prestigious Prince of Asturias Award for Concord, France's Légion d'honneur and, more recently, Denmark's Hans Christian Andersen Award.  In June 2008, she was the Commencement Speaker at Harvard University.

J.K. Rowling set up the Volant Charitable Trust, which supports a wide number of causes related to social deprivation and associated problems, particularly as they affect women and children.  The Trust has funded a variety of projects in the UK and abroad.  It also supports research into the causes and treatment of multiple sclerosis. For seven years she was an Ambassador of One Parent Families, now called Gingerbread, a charity working with lone parents and their children.  In 2007, she took an honorary position as President for the charity. In 2010, she founded, Lumos, a charity working to transform the lives of disadvantaged children.

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