TIMES? INTERVIEW

J.K. Rowling was thrilled when Harry Patter sold 30,000 copies; now that - figure has reached 30 million

Depression, fame and Hollywood — after 30 million books and £15 million , the reclusive J.Ky Rowling opens up. Exclusive interview by Ann Treneman

T oanne Kathleen Rowling does not do - any - thing by half. For months she has been writing , writing , writing — up to ten hours | a day — to finish the fourth Harry Potter I book. Now she is in recovery mode and %k»r giving her first interview for a long time. I say that I have heard that she has become a recluse and hates interviews. She gives me a look as if to say dont believe everything you read. Then she launches into the interview like a bat out of hell. She talks so fast that it is just possible she has found a way to avoid breathing altogether . The only time I see her inhale is around a Marlboro Light. She claims this was to be a non-smoking day. I'm not sure how this squares with five cigarettes in two hours. She is hyped up, helter skelter and is serious and funny at the same time. "WeVe been everywhere!" she exclaims at the end. "We 've done jewellery, we've done depression ... " She laughs, puffing away. Clearly the recluse phase is over. We have met once before, 2'A

years ago, when she was 32. Neither she...