Margaret May Tabberer (; 11December 19366December 2024) was an Australian fashion, publishing and television personality. She was a dual recipient of the

Gold Logie The Gold Logie Award for Most Popular Personality on Australian Television, commonly referred to simply as the Gold Logie, is an award presented annually at the Australian Logie Awards. The Gold Logie was first awarded at the 2nd Annual TV We ...

award for her television work. Tabberer founded her own fashion label and PR companies and was known for her long-time position as fashion editor of the '' Australian Women's Weekly'' magazine.

Career

Modelling and fashion career

At the age of 14, while attending her sister's wedding, she was spotted by a photographer and as a result was offered her first modelling job, a one-off assignment. In her early twenties she attended a modelling school and at the age of 23 was discovered by photographer

Helmut Newton Helmut Newton (né Neustädter; 31 October 192023 January 2004) was a German-Australian photographer. The ''The New York Times, New York Times'' described him as a "prolific, widely imitated fashion photographer whose provocative, erotically ch ...

who mentored her and launched her successful modelling career. While living in

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

in 1960, she won the Model of the Year award and then moved to

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

to take advantage of modelling opportunities there. She chose to end her modelling career at the age of 25 after beginning to lose her slim figure. Tabberer stayed well-connected to the fashion industry, however. In 1967 she started a

public relations Public relations (PR) is the practice of managing and disseminating information from an individual or an organization (such as a business, government agency, or a nonprofit organization) to the public in order to influence their perception. Pu ...

company, Maggie Tabberer & Associates, which took on many fashion-related clients and assignments. In 1981, she launched a plus-size clothing label called Maggie T. Tabberer was the brand's ambassador but did not have a stake in the company. A portrait of her by Australian artist Paul Newton was a finalist in the 1999

Archibald Prize The Archibald Prize is an Australian portraiture art prize for painting, generally seen as the most prestigious portrait prize in Australia. It was first awarded in 1921 after the receipt of a bequest from J. F. Archibald, J. F. Archib ...

Publishing and PR work

Tabberer began working in publishing when she wrote a fashion column, "Maggie Says", for ''

The Daily Mirror The ''Daily Mirror'' is a British national daily tabloid newspaper. Founded in 1903, it is part of Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN), which is owned by parent company Reach plc. From 1985 to 1987, and from 1997 to 2002, the title on its masthead ...

'' newspaper in Sydney in 1963. She remained with the paper for 16 years, until billionaire

Kerry Packer Kerry Francis Bullmore Packer (17 December 1937 – 26 December 2005) was an Australian media tycoon, and was considered one of Australia's most powerful media proprietors of the twentieth century. The Packer family company owned a controlling ...

asked her to become fashion editor of '' Australian Women's Weekly'' magazine in 1981. She soon became the public face of the magazine, frequently appearing on its cover and in television advertising. Tabberer stayed with the magazine for 15 years until 1996.

Television work

Tabberer began appearing on television in 1964, as one of the "beauties" on the panel talk show ''

Beauty and the Beast "Beauty and the Beast" is a fairy tale written by the French novelist Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve and published in 1740 in (''The Young American and Marine Tales''). Villeneuve's lengthy version was abridged, rewritten, and publish ...

'' (the "beast" being the show's host, Eric Baume, until 1965 and then Stuart Wagstaff). Her appearances on ''Beauty and the Beast'' made her a household name and she later began hosting her own daily chat show, ''Maggie'', for which she won two consecutive Gold Logies in 1970 and 1971. She was the first person to win consecutive awards, although

Graham Kennedy Graham Cyril Kennedy Order of Australia, AO (15 February 1934 – 25 May 2005) was an Australian entertainer, comedian and variety performer, radio and television host as well as a personality and actor of theatre, television and film. He wa ...

had already won three non-consecutive Gold Logies by 1970. Beginning in 2005, she hosted her own television interview show, ''Maggie ... At Home With'', on Australian

pay TV Pay television, also known as subscription television, premium television or, when referring to an individual service, a premium channel, refers to subscription-based television services, usually provided by multichannel television providers, b ...

channel Bio (formerly the Biography Channel). On her show she "visit dthe homes of various Australian celebrities and elites to discuss their lives, careers, tragedies, and triumphs".

Personal life

Margaret May Tabberer was born on 11December 1936 in

Parkside, South Australia Parkside is an inner southern suburb of Adelaide, South Australia. It is located in the City of Unley. History The suburb was once home to the mental health campus of the Royal Adelaide Hospital. Known as 'The Parkside Asylum', it was the pr ...

, the youngest of five children to Alfred and Molly Trigar. Tabberer took her surname from her first husband, Charles Tabberer, whom she married at the age of 17. They had two daughters, Brooke and Amanda. The demands of her modelling career, however, saw that marriage end after seven years. After moving to Sydney with her daughters in 1960, Tabberer was introduced by

to Ettore Prossimo, an Italian restaurateur, whom she married in 1967. In that same year, Tabberer gave birth to their son, Francesco, who died of

sudden infant death syndrome Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), sometimes known as cot death or crib death, is the sudden unexplained death of a child of less than one year of age. Diagnosis requires that the death remain unexplained even after a thorough autopsy and ...

when 10 days old. The pair separated after 17 years of marriage, although they rekindled their friendship before Prossimo's death from a heart attack in 1996. In 1985, Tabberer announced that she was in a relationship with journalist Richard Zachariah (1945-2025). The couple co-presented a lifestyle television series, ''The Home Show'', on the

Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is Australia’s principal public service broadcaster. It is funded primarily by grants from the federal government and is administered by a government-appointed board of directors. The ABC is ...

from 1990 to 1995 when they separated. Tabberer suffered from diabetes in her later years and died on 6 December 2024, five days before her 88th birthday.

Honours and awards

In the Queen's Birthday Honours in 1998, Tabberer was made a

Member of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honours and awards system, Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarch ...

for service to the community, particularly through her support for charitable organisations and the advancement of the Australian fashion industry.TABBERER, Margaret May
''It's an Honour'' (Australian Government).

Awards

References

External links

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Harry M. Miller Management {{DEFAULTSORT:Tabberer, Maggie 1936 births 2024 deaths 20th-century Australian people 20th-century Australian women Australian female models Australian television personalities Australian women television personalities Gold Logie winners Members of the Order of Australia Mass media people from Adelaide Models from Adelaide