Eddie Izzard leaps to JK Rowling’s defence in ‘transphobia’ row
COMIC Eddie Izzard, the performer who describes himself as ‘gender fluid’, has defended author J. K. Rowling against claims that she is transphobic.
The 58-year-old stand-up, who says he doesn’t mind if he is addressed as he or she, called for a more measured assessment of the Harry Potter author’s stance on transgender issues. The bestselling author supports the right to transition but has voiced fears that some trans campaigners are pursuing policies that undermine what it is to be a woman.
Izzard said: ‘I don’t think J. K. Rowling is transphobic. I think we need to look at the things she has written about in her blog.’
Izzard told The Daily Telegraph that he could not understand why women and trans campaigners were often at loggerheads over gender issues. ‘Women have been through such hell over history,’ he said. ‘Trans people have been invisible, too.
‘ I hate the idea we are fighting between ourselves, but it’s not going to be sorted with the wave of wand. I don’t have all the answers. If people disagree with me, fine – but why are we going through hell on this?’
Rowling, 55, has become a victim of ‘cancel’ culture after her public comments ont ran s rights. In November The Mail on Sunday revealed how the creators of West End musical Six refused to appear on the same BBC Radio 2 show as her. Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss said d they would be unable to appear with Rowling until she had made efforts ‘to make amends with the trans community’.
Rowling first attracted criticism earlier last year after she took issue with the phrasing for an article about healthcare equality, titled Opinion: Creating a more equal post-COVID-19 world for people who menstruate. She tweeted: ‘ “People who menst ruate”. I ’ m sure there used to be a word for those people. Someone help me out. Wumben? Wimpund? Woomud?’
Izzard, who was referred to as ‘she/her’ on the Sky Arts series Portrait Artist Of The Year, said he didn’t mind if people call him she or he: ‘I prefer to be Eddie, that covers everything. I’m gender fluid.’