IT has been revealed that Thornbury features in JK Rowling’s latest book.
The area - including Thornbury High Street - was mentioned by the Harry Potter author in The Running Grave, the seventh instalment of her detective series Cormoran Strike.
The book features Oakleaze Road and the High Street in Thornbury as well as the Malthouse pub through chapters 96 to 98.
Greenhill Road in Alveston is also referenced.
Rowling’s Strike novels are published under the pen-name Robert Galbraith.
The series follows fictional British private detective Cormoran Strike and his partner Robin Ellacott through their cases.
In the latest instalment The Running Grave, a witness named Cherie lives in Oakleaze Road who Strike and Robin visit to interview about their case.
Afterwards they get lunch on the High Street at the Malthouse, describing Thornbury as a pretty town with hanging baskets and pastel coloured houses.
The pub was previously known as The Knot of Rope and the Exchange before that.
It was eventually renamed The Malthouse by pub and hotel operator Martson's in 2017 after undergoing a refurbishment.
Rowling's mention of The Malthouse has been welcomed by a Martson's spokesperson.
They said in a statement: “It is always great to see the great British pub playing a role in novels and TV dramas.
“They reflect the role they play in our society and our communities, whether as a meeting place, for social gatherings or simply as a navigation point for people looking for directions.
“It is especially welcome when real names and locations are kept (such as this with the Malthouse) to authenticate a story.”
It is not the first time South Gloucestershire and Gloucestershire have both cropped up in Rowling's novels.
Rowling was originally born at the now defunct Chipping Sodbury Maternity Hospital on Station Road in 1965.
Her dad worked as an aircraft engineer at the Rolls Royce, Filton, and her family lived in Winterbourne for five years before moving to Tutshill, near Chepstow.
It is believed in Winterbourne that she befriended a brother and sister with the last name Potter.
It is also widely accepted that Rowling named the infamous Dursley family after the Gloucestershire town of the same name.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here