MOVE over, J.K. Rowling. Make way for England’s latest literary sensation – Clive Woodall, a 46-year-old supermarket manager who wrote a bedtime story for his sons and wound up selling the film rights to Disney for a cool million.

He was the toast of London yesterday, as his 256-page talking-bird fairy tale, “One for Sorrow; Two for Joy,” hit bookstores amid speculation the tale could be as big as Rowling’s Harry Potter series.

“This could be the beginning of a new cult,” says Elizabeth Grice, a books reporter at London’s Daily Telegraph.

“Eight-year-olds are going to love it.”

That’s what Disney is counting on. The company bought the film rights to “One for Sorrow” last January and plans to produce an animated version.

“It’s a very strange thing,” Woodall tells The Post over the phone. “I did writing as a child, and it was always my dream. But I never thought I’d even see my stories published.”

After dropping out of college, Woodall went to work at a grocery store in his home village of Bassingbourn, near Cambridge.

But 11 years ago, shortly after his wife left him, Woodall was inspired to write again by a flock of magpies he

saw picking over a dead animal by the side of the road.

“I realized that magpies would make great villains,” he recalls. “With their black-andwhite feathers, they look like Cruella De Vil.’ ”

Soon Woodall was spending all his break time at the supermarket scribbling ideas, as he created a fantasy of the heroic little robin Kirrick, who leads the fight against evil magpies who have killed his friend and taken over the world of Birddom.

Kirrick gets help from magnificent eagles and a wise old owl named Tomar – “he’s sort of the Gandalf character,” Woodall says.

British critics are comparing Woodall’s book to Richard Adams’ “Watership Down” and other children’s

classics, but it might never have been finished if not for Woodall’s sons, who were 6 and 9 when he started writing. “Once I’d read them the first couple of pages, they wanted more,” Woodall recalls. “So I had to keep

going.”

He finished “One for Sorrow” in 1995, while on his honeymoon with his second wife, Tricia.

But the manuscript was rejected by 30 publishers, mainly due to its dark tone. One told Woodall the book

wasn’t “fluffy bunny” enough, and suggested he change the birds to furry animals.

But then his wife gave the book to the manager of the bank where she works, and that person passed it to Franc Roddam, a British film director best known for the 1979 movie “Quadrophenia.”

Roddam was hooked instantly. He bought the rights and set up a new division of his film company to release

the book in England, with a first print run of 20,000.

Roddam is currently fielding offers for a U.S. version.

Meanwhile, Woodall still works three days a week at the supermarket, but the Disney money means he can

spend the rest of his time at home working on a sequel.

He doesn’t have to look far for inspiration.

He writes at his diningroom table, in front of a picture window that looks out on a small 10-footby-10-foot garden full of some 25 bird feeders.

“We get all sorts,” Woodall says.

“There are quite a lot of magpies. But we get robins too, so all hope is not lost.”

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Winged wonder vs. kid wizard

Creator: Clive Woodall

Hero: Kirrick the robin

Goal: Save the world from magpies

Flies: With his wings

Cheers for: Birddom

Connection to serpents: Eats worms

Owl pal: Wise Tomar, who advises Kirrick

*

Creator: J.K. Rowling

Hero: Harry Potter

Goal: Save the world from Lord Voldemort

Flies: On a broom

Cheers for: Gryffindor

Connection to serpents: Talks to snakes

Owl pal: Hedwig, who delivers his mail