Engaged again

Rupert Murdoch (93) wants to marry for the fifth time

Rupert Murdoch(Bild: APA/AFP/Jewel SAMAD)

The media entrepreneur Rupert Murdoch, who celebrates his 93rd birthday on March 11, is once again being drawn to the altar.

He has proposed to 67-year-old retired molecular biologist Elena Zhukova and she has accepted. The wedding is planned for June and will take place at Murdoch's Californian winery, Moraga.

Last engagement broken off
Murdoch had already expressed his intention to marry last year. At the time, 67-year-old Ann Lesley Smith, the widow of country singer Chester Smith, was his chosen one. However, the relationship broke up after two weeks.

Zhukova came to the USA towards the end of the Soviet Union and, according to the New York Times, conducted research at the University of California, among other places. Her daughter Dasha was in a relationship with Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich until 2017.

Powerful media entrepreneur
Australian-born Murdoch, a US citizen since 1985, is one of the most powerful media entrepreneurs in the world. He owns the conservative news channel Fox News and the "Wall Street Journal" newspaper in the USA and the tabloid "Sun" and "The Times" newspaper in the UK.

The US magazine "Forbes" estimates the value of Murdoch's media empire News Corp at more than 20 billion dollars (18.3 billion euros).

Murdoch's first wife was the Australian stewardess Patricia Booker in 1956. The marriage broke up in 1967. Murdoch was then married to the newspaper reporter Anna Torv for more than 30 years.

They divorced in 1999. Murdoch's third marriage to Wendi Deng ended in 2013. In March 2016, he finally married ex-model Jerry Hall, the former partner of Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger. The marriage ended in 2022. Murdoch has a total of six children.