Gail Ruth Rebuck, Baroness Rebuck DBE (born 10 February 1952) is a British publisher and Chair of Penguin Random House UK.[1] She has served as a Labour member of the House of Lords since 2014.
The Baroness Rebuck | |
|---|---|
| Member of the House of Lords Lord Temporal | |
| Assumed office 18 September 2014 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Gail Ruth Rebuck 10 February 1952 |
| Political party | Labour |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2, including Georgia Gould |
| Education | Lycée Français Charles de Gaulle |
| Alma mater | University of Sussex (BA) |
| Occupation | Publisher |
Early life and education
editRebuck's Latvian-born Jewish grandfather, and her own father, were both in the London rag trade. Her mother was a Dutch Jew.[2]
At the age of four she was sent to the Lycée Français Charles de Gaulle, London, where she learned to read and write in French before she did in English.[3] She graduated with a degree in intellectual history from Sussex University in 1974.[4]
Career
editRebuck worked for several independent publishers and ran a paperback imprint for Hamlyn, before putting her own funds into a new imprint, Century. After a merger with Hutchinson in 1985, Century Hutchinson was taken over by Random House UK in 1989. Rebuck was appointed chair and chief executive of Random House UK in 1991.[4]
Rebuck was fifth in a 2006 Observer list of the top people in the British books industry,[5] and at ninth place in a 2011 Guardian version of the list.[6] In February 2013, she was assessed as the tenth most powerful woman in the UK by Woman's Hour on BBC Radio 4.[7] She was recognized as one of the BBC's 100 women of 2013.[8]
In February 2015, Rebuck succeeded Sir Neil Cossons as pro-provost and chair of council (the governing body) at the Royal College of Art (RCA); she joined the RCA council in 1999.[9]
Personal life
editShe was married to Philip Gould, until his death in November 2011. They had two daughters: Georgia Gould, who currently serves as the MP for Queen's Park and Maida Vale (UK Parliament constituency), and Grace Gould.[10]
Honours
editRebuck was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2000 New Year Honours,[4][11] and promoted to Dame Commander of the same Order (DBE) in the 2009 Birthday Honours.[12][13]
In 2014, it was announced that Rebuck was to become a Labour peer in the House of Lords, following in the footsteps of her late husband. She was created a life peer on 18 September 2014, taking the title Baroness Rebuck, of Bloomsbury in the London Borough of Camden.[14]
References
edit- ^ Gail Rebuck works at PENGUIN RANDOM HOUSE LIMITED since 1 July 2013 currently as a Director (PUBLISHER) http://www.cbetta.com/director/gail-rebuck-4
- ^ "Interview; Gail warning". The Independent. 4 April 1998. Retrieved 21 September 2020.
- ^ Boyd Tonkin, "Gail Rebuck: Power behind the prose", The Independent, 4 September 2010.
- ^ a b c "Best of British Industry Awards - Gail Rebuck". Archived from the original on 11 September 2011. Retrieved 28 September 2011.
- ^ Robert McCrum, "Our top 50 players in the world of books", The Observer, 5 March 2006.
- ^ Books Power 100: Gail Rebuck #9, The Guardian, 24 September 2011.
- ^ "The Power List 2013", Woman's Hour, BBC Radio 4.
- ^ "100 Women: Who took part?". BBC News. 20 October 2013. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
- ^ "New Chair of Council at the Royal College of Art". Retrieved 18 June 2015.
- ^ Tim Adams (28 April 2012). "Philip Gould: a good life and death | Politics". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 June 2017.
- ^ "No. 55710". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 December 1999. p. 10.
- ^ Graham Ruddick, "Random House boss Gail Rebuck leads Queen's birthday honours for financial world", The Daily Telegraph, 13 June 2009.
- ^ "No. 59090". The London Gazette (Supplement). 13 June 2009. p. 7.
- ^ "No. 60997". The London Gazette. 24 September 2014. p. 18554.