JK Rowling may share the same birthday as Harry Potter, but her latest tweets suggest the author has more in common with arachnophobe Ron Weasley.

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The Hogwarts novelist let fans know that she came face to face with a spider that may or may not have been a descendent of Aragog. Fortunately, Rowling didn’t have to lob a Ford Anglia at the beast, but she cleverly used an “accio husband” enchantment to summon help. It was then that said husband apparated to trap the acromantula with the glassio ceilingum shield charm, possibly with an arania exumai incantation thrown in.

Rowling has since confirmed that A) her husband is great, and B) the spider is massive. But no word yet on whether the arachnid has been returned to the forest or if Rowling will be draining the spider’s venom (it’s a hundred Galleons a pint, we hear).

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But for the moment, farewell spider. King of the arachnids by JK Rowling’s door. Your body may decay... but your spirit lingers through Twitter and your human friends find solace, the loss they have sustained.

Authors

Thomas LingDigital editor, BBC Science Focus

Thomas is Digital editor at BBC Science Focus. Writing about everything from cosmology to anthropology, he specialises in the latest psychology, health and neuroscience discoveries. Thomas has a Masters degree (distinction) in Magazine Journalism from the University of Sheffield and has written for Men’s Health, Vice and Radio Times. He has been shortlisted as the New Digital Talent of the Year at the national magazine Professional Publishers Association (PPA) awards. Also working in academia, Thomas has lectured on the topic of journalism to undergraduate and postgraduate students at The University of Sheffield.

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