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Summary The inquiry also heard about occasions when Rowling had to cover her children in blankets.
Harry Potter author JK Rowling told the Leveson Inquiry on Thursday that she has had to take action against newspapers about 50 times over breaches of privacy and misreporting.The author said journalists drove her out of the home she bought in 1997 with the advance from the first of her seven Harry Potter books.She told the inquiry into press standards she felt like a sitting duck after a photograph was published of the house number and street name, and it became untenable to remain there.Rowling also described to the inquiry her anger when she found a note that a reporter had slipped inside the bag of her elder daughter when she was in her first year at primary school.The inquiry also heard about occasions when Rowling had to cover her children in blankets to hide them from paparazzi waiting outside her house.Rowling, who lives in a remote part of rural Scotland, described one time when two journalists from a Scottish tabloid paper sat outside her home in a car at a time when she was not expecting any press interest in her.One of her publicists asked the reporters what they were doing, and they replied: Its a boring day at the office, the inquiry heard.The author said: My family and I were literally under surveillance for their amusement. There wasnt even a pretence that there was a story. It is difficult to explain to people who havent experienced it what that feels like the twist in the stomach as you wonder what do they want? What do they think they have got?Rowling added she felt threatened by such occasions of media interest in her personal life.While speaking at the inquiry, Rowling highlighted that a she had particular concerns about photographs being taken of her children.In 2003, shortly after her son was born, she said her family was besieged for a week. Rowling said she went for a walk with her daughter after she thought photographers had gone.Rowling said she and others giving evidence at the inquiry did not want special treatment. The first part of the Leveson Inquiry is looking at the culture, practices and ethics of the press in general.The second part, examining the extent of unlawful activities by journalists, will not begin until detectives have completed their investigation into alleged phone hacking and corrupt payments to police and any prosecutions have been concluded.
