Paul Mescal, Daisy Edgar-Jones and Jessie Buckley are among the signatories of an open letter in support of Sally Rooney, the “Normal People” author whose books have been withdrawn from sale in the UK over her support of the banned protest group Palestine Action.
Sally Rooney (Credits: Deadline)
Earlier this month it was confirmed that Rooney’s books would no longer be supplied to the UK after Palestine Action was proscribed as a terrorist organisation by the British government in July 2025. Following the proscription, Rooney said she intended to use proceeds from her sales to support the group. Under UK law, supporting a proscribed organisation is an offence.
Why Sally Rooney’s UK book ban happened
Palestine Action is a pro-Palestinian direct action group whose proscription last July made financial support for it a criminal offence in Britain. Rooney’s public pledge to channel her book proceeds to the group left her UK publisher, Faber & Faber, in an impossible position. The publisher said in a statement that British antiterrorism legislation means it cannot pass on earnings from book sales to Rooney, and Rooney herself has said she will “no longer supply” her books to the UK.
Paul Mescal, Daisy Edgar-Jones and Jessie Buckley back Rooney
The open letter adds star power to the backlash. Mescal and Edgar-Jones, who famously played the leads in the TV adaptation of Rooney’s “Normal People,” have put their names to the letter alongside Buckley, signaling solidarity with their scribe at a moment when her publishing future in Britain is in doubt.
The case has become one of the most high-profile clashes between an author and UK antiterrorism law in recent memory, raising questions about free expression, publisher liability and how far an author’s political positions can reach into their commercial work.
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Source: Deadline — read the full story there.