J.K. Rowling beat out the Queen and Kate Middleton as the most inspiring British woman — at least among one subset of voters.
The Harry Potter author tied Olympic champion Jessica Ennis with 56 percent of Manchester respondents finding them inspirational, while the Queen earned the vote of two-fifths of UK women voters in the Oxfam survey. Dame Hellen Mirren came in third on the list.
Among all British respondents, J.K. Rowling finished third with 39 percent of voters fining her inspiring, Look to the Stars found. The Queen and Ennis topped that list with 42 percent of the vote, while Kate Middleton finished seventh with 25 percent.
The Manchester vote was set up by Oxfam’s Get Together fundraiser, which is the largest celebration in the UK of International Women’s day, on March 8.
The fact that J.K. Rowling topped the list shows that respondents recognized the author’s achievement in creating a universe of wizards and sorcery.
“Following on from the Woman’s Hour Power List, it is clear that British women strongly value personal dedication and achievement, whether they are looking up to high profile figures or family members,” Harriett Roberts, Oxfam community fundraising manager for Oxfam in Manchester told Mancurian Matter .
“This is what Oxfam Get Together is all about. It is about celebrating and supporting women around the world who are working hard with passion and dedication to get themselves out of poverty.”
The report noted that Manchester residents may have looked closer to home in selecting J.K. Rowling and Jessica Ennis over members of the royal family.
Though the Harry Potter series has concluded, J.K. Rowling has said she may revisit the Potter universe in future books. This fall she released an adult fiction book, The Casual Vacancy .
