The Harry Potter creator (pictured) sparked fury after showing her support for a tweet that belittled transgender women as 'men in dresses'

She became the world's favourite author by telling of epic fantasy battles between powerful wizards – but now J. K. Rowling has found herself at the centre of a far more down- to-earth showdown after angering radical transgender activists.

The Harry Potter creator sparked fury after showing her support for a tweet that belittled transgender women as 'men in dresses'.

She was immediately branded a TERF – a derogatory term activists use against feminists who don't recognise trans women as genuinely female – and 'transphobic'.

Jack Monroe, the cookery writer who was born a woman but now identifies as 'non-binary', posted on Twitter: 'So @jk_rowling wrote books where the characters could literally transform into cats and dead people but trans folk are beyond all comprehension? 'Men in dresses' from a woman who literally made a fortune writing about MEN IN DRESSES… this is so crappy.'

After the row erupted, Rowling – normally known for her impeccably politically correct views – said she had 'liked' the tweet by mistake.

The original post came from a female Labour supporter called Rachel, who complained that trans people got more backing from the party faithful than she ever did.

Using demeaning slang for male socialists who downplay women's issues, she wrote: 'Men in dresses get the brocialist solidarity I never had. That's misogyny!' The account has since been deleted.

Transgender writer Shon Faye also slated the Harry Potter millionaire, saying: 'Trans culture is seeing the beloved author of your generation like a transphobic tweet from a troll account which has repeatedly called you a man.'

Another Twitter user wrote: 'The OWLs at Hogwarts are being discontinued to make way for TERFs.' The acronym stands for 'trans-exclusionary radical feminist'.

Jack Monroe (pictured), the cookery writer who was born a woman but now identifies as 'non-binary', posted on Twitter: 'So @jk_rowling wrote books where the characters could literally transform into cats and dead people but trans folk are beyond all comprehension? 'Men in dresses' from a woman who literally made a fortune writing about MEN IN DRESSES… this is so crappy.'

A spokesman for Ms Rowling said she had 'liked' the tweet by accident, telling The Mail on Sunday: 'It was a mistake. I'm afraid J. K. Rowling had a clumsy middle-aged moment.

'This is not the first time she has favourited [a post] by holding her phone incorrectly.'

She has previously shown sympathy for gay and transgender issues.

The Cormoran Strike detective thrillers she wrote under the pen name Robert Galbraith feature a transgender character, and in 2008 she revealed that Harry Potter wizard Dumbledore is gay.

The row comes as Labour is riven by a fractious debate over whether candidates who were born male but now identify as female can be placed on all-women shortlists.