JK Rowling said today she is a sexual assault and domestic abuse survivor as she defended herself from accusations of transphobia.

The author said she and other abuse survivors were "slurred as bigots" when discussing single-sex spaces.

It comes after she was accused of transphobia after after tweeting about women menstruating.

Her comments caused dozens of celebrities to speak out, with Daniel Radcliffe apologising to Harry Potter fans offended by her tweets earlier in the week.

Today, she wrote: "I've been in the public eye now for over 20 years and have never talked publicly about being a domestic abuse and sexual assault survivor.

"This isn't because I'm ashamed those things happened to me, but because they're traumatic to revisit and remember

"I also feel protective of my daughter from my first marriage. I didn't want to claim sole ownership of a story that belongs to her, too.

"However, a short while ago, I asked her how she'd feel if I were publicly honest about that part of my life and she encouraged me to go ahead.

"I'm mentioning these things now not in an attempt to garner sympathy, but out of solidarity with the huge numbers of women who have histories like mine, who've been slurred as bigots for having concerns around single-sex spaces."

This week Rowling, 54, posted a response to a headline referring to “people who menstruate”.

She wrote: “I’m sure there used to be a word for those people. Someone help me out. Wumben? Wimpund? Woomud?”

Several people hit back to point out it was not only women born women who menstruate.

Rowling, who is said to be worth £765million, responded: “My life has been shaped by being female.

"I do not believe it’s hateful to say so.”

More to follow…

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