Diana Mary Gribble (13 April 19424 October 2011) was an Australian publisher, book editor and businessperson. A

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

, Gribble was one of the most influential figures in the Australian publishing scene and wider cultural life between 1975 and 2010.

Biography

Gribble was born in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, the daughter of Sir

Archibald Glenn Sir Joseph Robert Archibald Glenn, OBE (24 May 19114 January 2012) was an Australian industrialist and founding Chancellor of La Trobe University. Biography Glenn was born in 1911 and raised near Sale, Victoria.David Balderstone, obituary: "H ...

and Betty Balderstone. Educated at

Fintona Girls' School Fintona Girls' School is a small, independent, non-denominational, day school for girls, located in Balwyn, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Established in 1896, Fintona is a non-selective school and currently caters for approximately 600 stud ...

, she began studying architecture at the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb nor ...

, where she met Hilary McPhee. In 1975 McPhee and Gribble co-founded

McPhee Gribble McPhee Gribble was a Australian publishing firm, based in Carlton, Victoria. It became an imprint of the Penguin Group. History Founded by Di Gribble and Hilary McPhee in 1975 McPhee Gribble was the initial publisher of works by significant Au ...

, an Australian publishing house that was the first publisher of numerous well-known Australian authors including Glen Tomasetti,

Helen Garner Helen Garner (née Ford, born 7 November 1942) is an Australian novelist, short-story writer, screenwriter and journalist. Garner's first novel, ''Monkey Grip (novel), Monkey Grip'', published in 1977, immediately established her as an origina ...

Tim Winton Timothy John Winton (born 4 August 1960) is an Australian writer. He has written novels, children's books, non-fiction books, and short stories. In 1997, he was named a Living Treasure by the National Trust of Australia, and has won the Miles ...

Murray Bail Murray Bail (born 22 September 1941) is an Australian writer of novels, short stories and non-fiction. In 1980 he shared the Age Book of the Year award for his novel ''Homesickness.'' He was born in Adelaide, South Australia. He has lived most ...

Kaz Cooke Kaz Cooke (born Karen Cooke; 17 December 1962) is an Australian author, cartoonist and broadcaster. She has written several bestselling advice books for girls and women, including ''Real Gorgeous'', ''Up the Duff'' (also published under different ...

Peter Cundall Peter Joseph Cundall, (1 April 1927 – 5 December 2021) was an English-born Australian horticulturalist, conservationist, author, broadcaster and television personality. He lived in Tasmania's Tamar Valley, and until 2008, at the age of 81, ...

Rod Jones Rod Jones may refer to: Sports American football *Rod Jones (cornerback) (born 1964), American football cornerback in the National Football League *Rod Jones (offensive lineman) (born 1974), American football tackle in the National Football League ...

, Jean McCaughey, Rodney Hall,

Kathy Lette Kathryn Marie Lette (born 11 November 1958) is an Australian-British author whose works have been best-sellers. Early life Lette was born on 11 November 1958 in Sydney's southern suburbs. She appeared in ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' of 20 Au ...

Gabrielle Carey Gabrielle Carey (born 10 January 1959) is an Australian writer noted for the teen novel, '' Puberty Blues'', which she co-wrote with Kathy Lette. This novel was the first teenage novel published in Australia that was written by teenagers. Carey ...

and

Drusilla Modjeska Drusilla Modjeska (born 1946) is a contemporary Australian writer and editor. Life Modjeska was born in London and was raised in Hampshire. She spent several years in Papua New Guinea (where she was briefly a student at the University of Pa ...

. In 1989, McPhee Gribble was sold to

Penguin Books Penguin Books is a British publishing, publishing house. It was co-founded in 1935 by Allen Lane with his brothers Richard and John, as a line of the publishers The Bodley Head, only becoming a separate company the following year.Eric Beecher Eric Beecher is an Australian journalist, editor and media proprietor. He was editor of the ''Sydney Morning Herald'' for four years and for three years was editor-in-chief of the Herald and Weekly Times group. Career In 1990, he founded Text ...

and together they launched Text Media Group; and attracted authors including

Peter Singer Peter Albert David Singer (born 6 July 1946) is an Australian moral philosopher, currently the Ira W. DeCamp Professor of Bioethics at Princeton University. He specialises in applied ethics and approaches ethical issues from a secular, ...

Tim Flannery Timothy Fridtjof Flannery (born 28 January 1956) is an Australian mammalogist, palaeontologist, environmentalist, Conservation biology, conservationist, Exploration, explorer, author, Science communication, science communicator, activist and p ...

The Chaser The Chaser are an Australian satirical comedy group, best known for their television programmes and satirical news masthead. The group take their name from their satirical newspaper, a publication known to challenge conventions of taste. Th ...

team, Shane Maloney,

Hazel Hawke Hazel Susan Hawke, AO (née Masterson, 20 July 192923 May 2013) was the first wife of Bob Hawke, the 23rd Prime Minister of Australia. She married him in 1956, and supported him throughout his prime ministership (1983–1991); they divorced in ...

Robert Manne Robert Michael Manne (born 31 October 1947) is an Emeritus Professor of politics and Vice-Chancellor's Fellow at La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia. He is a leading Australian public intellectual. Background Robert Manne was born in Melbo ...

and

Raimond Gaita Raimond Gaita (born Raimund Gaita; 14 May 1946) is a German-born Australian philosopher and award-winning writer. He was, until 2011, foundation professor of philosophy at the Australian Catholic University and professor of moral philosophy at ...

. Text was sold to

Fairfax Media Fairfax Media was a media company in Australia and New Zealand, with investments in newspaper, magazines, radio and digital properties. The company was founded by John Fairfax as John Fairfax and Sons, who purchased ''The Sydney Morning Herald' ...

in 2004. In 2005, again with Beecher, she co-founded Private Media and acquired ''

Crikey Crikey is an Australian electronic magazine comprising a website and email newsletter available to subscribers. Crikey was described by the former Federal Opposition Leader Mark Latham as the "most popular website in Parliament House" in ''The ...

'', and additional online news services. Gribble was a Director of the

Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-own ...

, including a term as deputy chair, a member of the

Australia Council The Australia Council for the Arts, commonly known as the Australia Council, is the country's official arts council, serving as an arts funding and advisory body for the Government of Australia. The council was announced in 1967 as the Austra ...

, a director of

Lonely Planet Lonely Planet is a travel guide book publisher. Founded in Australia in 1973, the company has printed over 150 million books. History Early years Lonely Planet was founded by married couple Maureen and Tony Wheeler. In 1972, they embarked ...

, of the

Melbourne Symphony Orchestra The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra (MSO) is an Australian orchestra based in Melbourne. The MSO is resident at Hamer Hall. The MSO has its own choir, the MSO Chorus, following integration with the Melbourne Chorale in 2008. The MSO relies on f ...

, the Melbourne Major Events Company,

Austrade The Australian Trade and Investment Commission, or Austrade ( ), is the Australian Government's trade, investment and education promotion agency which was also given responsibility for tourism policy, programs and research from 2013. Austrade ...

Circus Oz Circus Oz is a contemporary circus company based in Australia, collectively owned by its Membership, founded in 1977. Its shows incorporate theatre, satire, rock 'n' roll and a uniquely Australian humour. History Early years Circus Oz was inco ...

, Care Australia, and a founding member of the Women's Electoral Lobby, as well as the Essendon Football Club's Women's Network. Gribble died of

pancreatic cancer Pancreatic cancer arises when cell (biology), cells in the pancreas, a glandular organ behind the stomach, begin to multiply out of control and form a Neoplasm, mass. These cancerous cells have the malignant, ability to invade other parts of t ...

in October 2011, aged 69.

References

External links

"My friend, Diana Gribble, died the other night.."
by Hilary McPhee,

ABC Online The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-owned ...

* . {{DEFAULTSORT:Gribble, Di 1942 births 2011 deaths Australian businesspeople Australian book editors Australian feminist writers Book publishers (people) Members of the Order of Australia