Rupert Murdoch splits from Jerry Hall as theory emerges he disapproved of her smoking

A theory has emerged that Rupert Murdoch ended his six-year marriage to model Jerry Hall because he disapproved of his fourth wife’s smoking habit.

The media tycoon was not a fan of his model wife’s fondness for tobacco and would often be spotted standing at a distance as Ms Hall took a drag on a cigarette.

The couple’s split was revealed publicly when Ms Hall and her side of the family failed to attend her husband’s annual summer party in London this week. 

Rumours have swirled around the reason for the shock break-up but Murdoch’s strong dislike for Ms Hall’s smoking is a persistent theory, Private Sydney reported.  

Rupert Murdoch ended his marriage with Jerry Hall after spending the past six years disapproving of his fourth wife’s smoking habit

Rumours have swirled around the reason for the sudden breakup as it was revealed Murdoch had a strong dislike for Ms Hall’s smoking (pictured, Hall in Perth in 2010)

The Texan model has been publicly open about her love for smoking and previously boasted about looking ‘pretty good’ for her age despite her habit. 

‘But I smoke, I drink, I like wine, I love sun tanning, I drink coffee. I am doing all sorts of things I shouldn’t do,’ she told Good Housekeeping in 2014.

‘I did think it was odd that she wasn’t there. She’s a social butterfly and would generally be at these sort of functions,’ one of those present at the Serpentine Gallery in London on Monday evening said of Hall’s absence from the event. 

‘I also noticed that none of her side of the family was there, nor her friends.’

Murdoch and Hall were last seen together in public in London in August 2021, when they were pictured arriving separately for a dinner. They are understood to have left together in a shared car.

They ended their relationship recently, surprising friends, two people with knowledge of the situation told the New York Times.

Hall made no attempt to hide her habit and was spotted smoking in the back of a limousine as she travelled with Murdoch around Australia in 2017. 

Murdoch and Hall attended the belated Christmas party of then-Australian prime minister Malcolm Turnbull, and later visited Melbourne via a private jet.

At the time the loved-up couple were all smiles as they walked arm-in-arm through the gates of Kirribilli House to meet political, media, and business elite.

Hall wore a striking crimson wiggle dress and matching cardigan draped across her shoulders, completing her look with a $5,000 red Bvlgari handbag, sunglasses and a statement pearl bangle. 

Murdoch, 91, and Hall, 65, attended the belated Christmas party of then-Australian prime minister Malcolm Turnbull in January 2017,  all smiles as they walked arm-in-arm through the gates of Kirribilli House

Hall wore a striking crimson wiggle dress and matching cardigan draped across her shoulders, completing her look with a $5,000 red Bvlgari handbag, sunglasses and a statement pearl bangle 

Murdoch and Hall paid a visit to Melbourne a couple of weeks later on the News Corp boss’ Gulfstream 650 private jet.

Hall, 60, cut a slim figure in a glamorous all-white ensemble as she enjoyed a cigarette in the back of a limousine, while Murdoch, 85, looked dapper in a classic navy suit with matching tie and white shirt.

The powerhouse couple were joined by Murdoch’s eldest son Lachlan, who is part-heir to the $62 billion media empire, and his wife, British-born Australian model Sarah Murdoch.

Murdoch and Hall paid a visit to Melbourne a couple of weeks later where Hall, 60, cut a slim figure in a glamorous all-white ensemble as she enjoyed a cigarette in the back of a limousine, while Mr Murdoch, 85, looked dapper in a classic navy suit

Murdoch, who is worth $17.7 billion, has six children in total: daughter Prudence MacLeod, now 64, with his first wife Patricia Booker, daughter Elisabeth, now 53, and sons Lachlan, now 50, and James, now 49, with his second wife Anna Mann, and daughter Grace, now 21, and Chloe, now 19, who he shares with his third wife Wendi Deng.

Hall was previously in a long-term relationship with Rolling Stones rocker Mick Jagger, with whom she shares four children – Elizabeth, 38, James, 36, Georgia May, 30, and Gabriel, 24 – however the two never officially wed during their 22-year relationship.

The couple tied the knot in London in March 2016 in a very low-key ceremony at Spencer House, which overlooks Green Park, after a whirlwind five-month romance.