Author Gillian Philip who was dumped by agent over her support for JK Rowling says women are ‘terrified’ of speaking out on trans debate because of fears they’ll lose their jobs if they are targeted by cancel culture mob
- Gillian Philip, 59, was jettisoned from role writing titles for HarperCollins
- She put the hashtag #IStandWithJKRowling on her Twitter profile
- The author was dropped by her employer, Working Partners
A bestselling children’s author who was dropped by her agent and employer after expressing support for JK Rowling in the bitter row over transgender rights has said women are ‘scared’ that activists will ‘come for them’.
Gillian Philip, 59, became a lorry driver after being jettisoned from her role writing titles that were published by major firm HarperCollins in 2020.
It came after the writer, who penned a popular series of books for eight-to-12-year-olds, put the hashtag #IStandWithJKRowling on her Twitter profile.
Speaking on a podcast produced by the Free Speech Union, she hit out at activists who claim that ‘cancel culture’ is not real, highlighting how she lost her job and income overnight.
She added that women who step into the trans debate feel they have to be anonymous on social media because they ‘know activists will come for them’.
Bestselling children’s author Gillian Philip, who was dropped by her agent and employer after expressing support for JK Rowling in the bitter row over transgender rights, has said women are ‘scared’ that activists will ‘come for them’
The author used to be one of several authors writing under the name Erin Hunter on popular animal fantasy series including Warrior Cats, Survivors and Bravelands.
CLICK TO READ MORE: ANDREW NEIL: Why I’m proud to be a ‘TERF’ and join JK Rowling on the front line in the gender wars
She had expressed her support for Ms Rowling after the Harry Potter author retweeted an article referring to ‘people who menstruate’ and questioned why the story did not use the word ‘women’.
Ms Rowling was subjected to trolling and accusations of being transphobic, but since then has not shied away from expressing her views on women’s rights and single-sex spaces.
Ms Philip was herself subjected to death threats and sexualised abuse after posting the hashtag, prompting her to add in a tweet: ‘Bring it on, homophobes and lesbian-haters
Speaking of cancel culture, Ms Philip said in the new podcast episode: ‘It is entirely a mob mentality. It is madness of crowds, it is whipped up like witch hunts.
‘The ultimate insult is that they turn around and say, “well cancel culture isn’t real, this didn’t happen”.’
She added that cancel culture is not aimed at herself or other prominent authors and campaigners such as Helen Joyce and Julie Bindel.
Ms Philip had tweeted her support for Ms Rowling (pictured) after the Harry Potter author retweeted an article referring to ‘people who menstruate’ and questioned why the story did not use the word ‘women’
‘It is aimed at the people who are watching. Because an awful lot of women are still terrified,’ she said.
Responding to the alleged claim that she has not been silenced because she has previously received sympathetic media coverage, she added: ‘Well apart from the fact of losing my job and losing my income, the cancellation thing is a warning to others, it is saying “you too will lose your job if you dare to speak out about this.”
‘And an awful lot of women are still scared. Many still feel they have to be anonymous on Twitter because they know, they know they will lose their jobs, they know the activists will come for them.’
Ms Philip revealed in an interview with the Daily Mail last September that the furore that saw her lose her job came just six weeks after the death of her husband.
Within a month of adding the hashtag to her profile, the author was told by her agent that Working Partners, which commissions authors to pen titles for major publishers, had ended her contract, under instruction from HarperCollins.
At the time, the publisher stated: ‘HarperCollins UK does not have a contract with this author, we have no direct relationship with her and we have not sacked her.’
Working Partners said the decision was not in direct response to her expressed views but because she had ‘associated the Erin Hunter pen-name with her personal views on Twitter’.
Soon afterwards, Ms Philip was dropped by her literary agency. She had received death and rape threats online and activists had emailed her employer calling for her to be sacked.
She told the Mail last year: ‘I felt betrayed. And even though I knew the people sending messages were trolls, having so much hatred and venom — and those awful threats — levelled at you takes a serious toll.
Gillian Philip, 59, became a lorry driver after being jettisoned from her role writing titles for major publisher HarperCollins in 2020
‘I deactivated Twitter, but still the death and rape threats came, via my website. These attacks were much harder to bear because my employers, who I’d thought were my friends, weren’t defending me.
‘The publishing industry should be about freedom of expression and diversity of opinion, but it has caved in to this toxic community, which wants to control how people think.
‘I know of authors who have had books pulped and contracts cancelled because publishers are terrified of a backlash.’
Ms Philip opted to re-train as an HGV driver when her literary income fell from around £30,000 to the £10,000 a year she received in royalties from her published works.
She also took her employer, Working Partners, to an industrial tribunal after she was let go, claiming discrimination on the grounds of her beliefs.
Her claim was unsuccessful after the tribunal ruled she was not an employee. But the author is now crowdfunding for an appeal with the help of the Free Speech Union.
The campaign on Crowdjustice.com has so far raised more than £24,000 but has the aim of reaching £35,000.
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