Rupert Murdoch ‘open to fifth marriage,’ according to report

Rupert Murdoch is reportedly considering getting married for the fifth time, this time to his girlfriend Ann-Lesley Smith.

The media mogul, 91, recently finalised his divorce from his fourth wife Jerry Hall after six years of marriage.

Now, Murdoch is apparently considering tying the knot again, to Smith, 66, according to The Daily Beast.

Murdoch’s first marriage was to Patricia Booker, a former flight attendant from Melbourne, with whom he has one daughter, Prudence. After divorcing in 1967, Murdoch married Scottish journalist Anna Torv, with whom he shares children Elisabeth, Lachlan and James. Murdoch then went on to marry Wendi Deng Murdoch in 1999, with the pair going on to have two children, Grace and Chloe, before ending their 14-year marriage in 2013.

The News Corp CEO married Hall in March 2016 before reportedly informing her of his intention to end their marriage via email.

Murdoch and Smith, who was previously married to late country music singer Chester Smith, began dating in the fall. The pair were pictured together on a beach in Barbados last month.

A friend of the 91-year-old billionaire told The Daily Beast that “love is in the air” and “he’s happy and having a good time” with Smith.

As for why Murdoch would consider marriage again, friends of the media tycoon have suggested it has to do with his religion and that he prefers to be married rather than to date.

Smith has spoken previously about her own relationship with religion, telling the Christian Broadcast Network that she formed a relationship with God after the end of her first marriage.

“The Lord gave me thirst and a hunger for Him, and I actually replaced the things of the world with the Scriptures,” she said. “As I began to walk with God, the things of the world just seemed pointless to me.”

The Independent has contacted representatives for Murdoch for comment.