Formerly an executive in Kenya's principal English-language newspaper, Althea Tebbutt escaped to Australia in the 1960s when Kenya gained its independence. She joined Rigby in Adelaide in 1965 as an editor and remained with the firm until 1973. In 1967 she was appointed to head a publishing team which produced Rigby's Seal Australian paperback series, and its Instant Books series of 'purse books' or pocket-sized information books. Both series were very successful and sold in the millions.
