Astley, Thea (1925–2004)

Australian novelist. Born Beatrice May Astley, Aug 25, 1925, in Brisbane, Queensland; dau. of Cecil Astley and Eileen (Lindsay) Astley; died Aug 2004, in Byron Bay, Queensland, Australia; dau. of Cecil Astley (journalist); attended All Hallows Convent; University of Queensland, arts degree, 1947; attended Teachers Training College; m. Edmund John (Jack) Gregson, Aug 27, 1948, in Sydney (died Jan 2003); children: one son, Ed Gregson (tv producer).

Traveling with father, a journalist with the newspaper The Queenslander, became acquainted with the ruggedness of rural Australia and its amalgam of people, imagery she would later use in her satirical writing; taught in rural schools for 5 years; moved to Sydney (1948) and took a teaching position at a local high school; published Girl With a Monkey (1958) and A Descant for Gossips (1960); was a senior tutor at Macquane University in Sydney (1968–80); wrote short stories, novellas, and novels, which emphasized the social intricacies and prejudices of small-town life; selected works include Girl With a Monkey (1958); other writings include A Boatload of Home Folk (1968), The Acolyte (1972), Hunting the Wild Pineapple (1979), Beachmasters (1985), Reaching Tin River (1990), Vanishing Points (1992), Coda (1994), The Multiple Effects of Rainshadow (1997) and Drylands (2000). Won 4 Miles Franklin awards, the Patrick White award, the gold medal of the Australian Literature Society, and the inaugural Steele Rudd award.