Gibbons, Stella (–)British novelist and poet, best known as the author of Cold Comfort Farm. Name variations: Stella Webb. Born Stella Dorothea Gibbons on January 5, , in London, England; died in December at age 87; eldest child of Telford Charles Gibbons (a north London doctor) and Maud Williams; educated at home by governesses until age 13, when she attended the North.