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Business Insider

Billionaire media mogul Rupert Murdoch married his fifth wife, Elena Zhukova, at his Moraga Vineyards in California this weekend.
Murdoch, 93, had announced his engagement to the 67-year-old retired molecular biologist in March – less than a year after he called off his last engagement to Ann Lesley Smith, a former model and police chaplain.

In all, the founder of News Corp and Fox News has been married five times. His love life, including high-profile marriages to entrepreneur Wendi Deng and model Jerry Hall, has often made headlines throughout his career. His split from his second wife, Anna, has been cited as one of the most expensive divorces in history, with reports claiming she earned a staggering US$1.7 billion in their settlement, though that figure has been called in to question, per The Guardian.
In 2024, Murdoch and his family are worth almost US$20 billion, according to Forbes.
Here’s a timeline of his marriages – and almost marriages.
1. Patricia Booker

Murdoch married his first wife, Patricia Booker, a former department store model and flight attendant, when he was 25 years old in 1956. He married her against the wishes of his mother, Dame Elisabeth Murdoch, who reportedly regarded Booker as “less than” who she expected her son to marry, Vanity Fair reported.
The pair had a daughter together, Prudence, now 66, who sits on the board of Times Newspapers, a subsidiary of News Corp, London’s Evening Standard reported.
Murdoch and Booker were married for 11 years before divorcing in 1967.
2. Anna Murdoch Mann

Soon after his divorce from his first wife, Rupert met his soon-to-be second bride, Anna Murdoch Mann.
They first met when Anna was 18 years old. She had the opportunity to interview Rupert while she worked for the Sydney newspaper, The Daily Telegraph, which he later owned.
The media mogul and Scottish-Australian novelist were married for 32 years and had three children together: Elisabeth Murdoch, Lachlan Murdoch and James Murdoch.
Though Rupert’s marriage with Anna was his longest, the couple did have a tumultuous relationship towards the end, as rumours circulated that the media tycoon was having an affair with Deng, who was working as an intern for News Corp.-owned Star TV.
Rupert and Anna divorced in 1999.
3. Wendi Deng

Just 17 days after his divorce from Anna was finalised in June 1999, Rupert, then 68, married Chinese-American entrepreneur Deng, who was 31 at the time, as reported by the Evening Standard.
The pair met when Deng was a 29-year-old intern for Star TV, a Hong Kong television station owned by News Corp. They share two daughters, Grace and Chloe.
Deng and Murdoch separated in 2013.
4. Jerry Hall

A week before his 85th birthday in 2016, Murdoch married former supermodel and actress Jerry Hall, then 59.
Hall was previously married to Rolling Stones singer Mick Jagger, with whom she shares four children, before they were granted an annulment in 1999.
After six years of marriage, Hall filed for divorce from Murdoch in June 2022. But in mid-August of last year, she filed a request in Los Angeles Superior Court to dismiss her original petition for divorce and for permission to file a new one, which was dismissed, the Associated Press reported.
In a joint statement a day after news reports of Hall’s filing, their representatives announced they had finalised their divorce and “remain good friends and wish each other the best for the future”.
5. Ann Lesley Smith

In March 2023, Murdoch’s love life was back in the spotlight after he announced he was getting married for the fifth time.
In an interview with the New York Post, owned by Murdoch’s News Corp., Murdoch said he proposed to his bride-to-be Ann Lesley Smith, then 66, a former model and San Francisco police chaplain, on St Patrick’s Day.
“I was very nervous,” Murdoch told the Post. “I dreaded falling in love – but I knew this would be my last. It better be. I’m happy.”
The pair first met in September 2022 at his vineyard in Bel Air, California. Two weeks later, Murdoch said he called her.
Smith, who was married to the late country musician Chester Smith, who died in 2008, said, “In perspective, it’s not my first rodeo. Getting near 70 means being in the last half. I waited for the right time. Friends are happy for me.”
Murdoch added, “We’re both looking forward to spending the second half of our lives together.”
But the engagement was short-lived. They called off the wedding just weeks later in April 2023.
6. Elena Zhukova

Within a year of calling off his last engagement, Murdoch popped the question to his current partner Zhukova, a retired molecular biologist who was once married to Russian billionaire Alexander Radkin Zhukov.
Zhukova’s daughter, Dasha Zhukova, was formerly married to Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich.
The media mogul announced his engagement in March, less than a week shy of his 93rd birthday.
On June 1, they wed at Murdoch’s luxury estate in California, Moraga Bel Air.
This article originally appeared on Business Insider.


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Rupert Murdoch

Billionaire media boss Rupert Murdoch’s 5 marriages – and 1 almost-marriage: from Jerry Hall, who has children with Mick Jagger, to Wendi Deng and the 93-year-old’s new wife, Elena Zhukova

Rupert Murdoch has been married five times over the years, including to Wendy Deng, his current wife Elena Zhukova, and Anna Murdoch Mann. Photo: AP, AFP

Rupert Murdoch and Elena Zhukova during their wedding ceremony in June. Photo: AP

Rupert Murdoch holding a copy of Sydney’s Daily Mirror, which he bought in 1960. Photo: Getty Images

Rupert Murdoch and his ex-wife, Anna Murdoch Mann, in 1997. Photo: AP

Rupert Murdoch and Wendi Deng in 2001. Photo: AFP

Jerry Hall, a former model, is another of Rupert Murdoch’s ex-wives. Photo: @thejerryhall/Instagram

Rupert Murdoch was also engaged to Ann Lesley Smith. Photo: AFP

Rupert Murdoch and Elena Zhukova married this month at his vineyard estate in Bel Air. Photo: AP

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Before his current marriage, Murdoch was engaged to Ann Lesley Smith, a former model and police chaplain – but after that fizzled out, he proposed to Zhukova, a molecular biologist, within the year
His split from his second wife Anna Murdoch Mann made history as one of the most expensive divorces – reports claim she earned a staggering US$1.7 billion in their divorce settlement


It’s the media boss’s fifth wedding: he’s been married to Jerry Hall – who has children with Mick Jagger – as well as Wendi Deng, Anna Murdoch Mann and Patricia Booker
