Britain's Queen Camilla welcomes JK Rowling to Palace of Holyroodhouse

Tue, 30 Jun, 2026 - 18:06

By Laura Elston, Press Association Court Correspondent

Britain's Queen Camilla has held an audience with Harry Potter creator JK Rowling at the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh.

Camilla was pictured smiling and standing side-by-side with the author as the pair met to discuss the importance of young people having access to books.

A post on the monarchy’s official social media read: “With a shared passion for books and a deep commitment to children reading for pleasure, The Queen and author J.K. Rowling have met at the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh.

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“Her Majesty and Ms Rowling discussed the importance of ensuring that young people have access to books and the vital part reading plays in opening doors for future generations.”

JK Rowling has become known for her outspoken views and previously been accused of transphobia for her views on gender identity, which she denies.

Camilla has revealed in the past how her grandchildren were fans of the Harry Potter books and how King Charles used to entertain them with dramatic readings of the series about the schoolboy wizard.

Camilla meeting pupils during a visit to Christ Church Primary School in London in February (Justin Tallis/PA)

“He does all the voices, because he is a brilliant mimic. I’m not very good. I try to do the voices, but acting isn’t my forte. But he sits down and they all sit with him,” she said at a literary event in 2017.

“I always think they are going to be wriggling around in the bed, but they sit spellbound.”

Camilla, an avid reader and patron of a number of literary organisations, launched her Instagram book club in lockdown, which developed into the charity The Queen’s Reading Room.

Camilla met JK Rowling in Edinburgh during Royal Week (Jane Barlow/PA)

In 2023, she urged authors to be unimpeded by those who wish to “curb the freedom of your expression”, with her comments following news that new releases of books by children’s author Roald Dahl were edited to remove potentially offensive language.

“Please keep doing so and please remain true to your calling, unimpeded by those who may wish to curb the freedom of your expression or impose limits on your imagination,” Camilla told a reception of authors and literary figures at Clarence House.