Who is Elena Zhukova? Rupert Murdoch’s rumoured scientist girlfriend

Media mogul Rupert Murdoch is rumoured to have entered into a new relationship with Elena Zhukova after the two were spotted vacationing on a yacht.

According to The Drudge Report, Murdoch, 92, “might be in love again” following his split from Ann Lesley Smith six months ago. “He’s got the energy of people half his age,” a source close to Murdoch told the outlet.

The News Corp founder was seen boarding the “Christina O,” a superyacht he rented with Zhukova, 66, over the weekend in the Mediterranean. The boat has been recorded on the coast of Corfu today.

Who is Zhukova?

Murdoch was alleged to have met the now-retired scientist through his third wife, Wendi Deng. In a recent DailyMail article, Deng’s connection to Zhukova was drawn through her daughter Dasha, a “Russian socialite” who was formerly married to “Russian oligarch and former Chelsea FC owner Roman Abramovich”.

According to the outlet, Deng and Dasha are allegedly “great friends” in New York, with a source telling the DailyMail: “They met through Wendi and Dasha.”

Zhukova is said to have left Russia in 1991 with her daughter for America, where she has resided for more than 30 years. During her career, she was a molecular biologist and diabetes specialist performing medical research at the University of California Los Angeles. She has been married and divorced twice, according to the outlet.

Her daughter Dasha divorced Abramovich in 2019 and is now married to Stavros Niarchos, “a billionaire heir,” according to the outlet. Dasha and Abramovich’s settlement reportedly allotted her a four-story apartment in Manhattan, where she currently lives.

While the Fox News owner is known for his news empire, he’s also notorious for his many romances. Most recently, he and Smith shared a romantic relationship, which abruptly ended when they called off their engagement after just two weeks.

“She just could not cope with being in the public eye. She is very private,” an insider connected to Smith told the DailyMail. “They sat down and talked and agreed it was better for them to part.”

Murdoch has also been married four times, divorcing his most recent wife of six years, former supermodel Jerry Hall, last August. His first marriage was with Patricia Booker from 1956 to 1967. He tied the knot with Anna Murdoch Mann in 1967, before their eventual divorce in 1999. Again, the Australian-American media proprietor took little time before marrying Wendi Deng, this time only 17 days after finalising his divorce from Anna Mann.

He and Booker share a daughter, Prudence MacLeod, 65, while he shares daughter Elisabeth, 54, and sons Lachlan, 51, and James, 50, with Anna Mann. He shares his youngest daughters Grace, 22, and Chloe, 20, with Deng.

The Independent has contacted Murdoch’s representatives for comment and has tried to contact Zhukova but have been unable to do so.