J. K. Rowling is a pen name. The author’s real name is Joanne Rowling, but she refers to herself as Jo.

She was born on 31st July 1965 in a town called Yate in Gloucestershire, England.

• Her mother was called Anne (she was half-French and half-Scottish), and her father was an engineer called Peter.
• She has a younger sister called Dianne.
• J. K. Rowling went to St Michael’s Primary School in Winterbourne. The school was founded by William Wilberforce.

The character of Albus Dumbledore (the headmaster of Hogwarts) was partly inspired by Alfred Dunn, the headmaster of St Michael’s.

J. K. Rowling started to write stories when she was a young girl. Most of these tales featured rabbits.

As a young teenager, she read all of the books written by Jessica Mitford.

J.K. Rowling didn’t really enjoy her teenage years. She had a difficult relationship with her father, and her mother was often unwell.

Her best friend when she was a teenager was Sean Harris. The character Ron Weasley from the Harry Potter books is partly inspired by Sean.

She enjoyed listening to The Smiths and The Clash.