Don't tell the writers of Succession, but eternal romantic Rupert Murdoch, 93 ... trends now
In the rolling hills of Bel Air, up a winding road bordered by gated McMansions, lies the Moraga Estate, a 16-acre property that is home to the only working vineyard in Los Angeles.
Built by Victor Fleming, the legendary director of Gone With The Wind and The Wizard Of Oz, the sun-dappled ranch is, to quote one wine writer who recently embarked on a guided tour, possessed of 'beauty that grips [visitors] with a kind of escapist romance'.
A similar sense of 'romance,' the wine writer somewhat mischievously continued, will from time to time take hold of Moraga's owner.
He is Rupert Murdoch, the 92-year-old patriarch of the world's most powerful media dynasty who, despite the passage of time, continually seems to find himself on the receiving end of Cupid's fateful arrow.
Rupert Murdoch, 92, has recently gotten engaged to Elena Zhukova (pictured), 66
Rupert Murdoch , the 92-year-old patriarch of the world's most powerful media dynasty who, despite the passage of time, continually seems to find himself on the receiving end of Cupid's fateful arrow. Pictured with his new fiancée
Rupert married his first wife, Patricia Booker (pictured), in 1956, they then divorced in 1967
In 2022, Murdoch met a 66-year-old widow named Ann Lesley Smith at a 200-person wine tasting on his vineyard's terrace.
One thing led to another and, for a couple of weeks, the sprightly couple were even engaged. But then Murdoch got cold feet and abruptly called things off.
More recently, the Spanish-style property, which boasts views of the Pacific, has been the backdrop to a second story-book love affair.
This one has seen the Press baron fall hook, line and sinker for a sprightly 67-year-old Russian-born microbiologist named Elena Zhukova.
On Thursday, the happy couple announced their engagement. An intimate wedding ceremony, at which Ms Zhukova will become the fifth Mrs Murdoch, is now to be held at Moraga on the afternoon of Saturday, June 1.
'Rupert will be 93 on Monday, so he wants to get on with it,' was how a source close to the tycoon explained the whirlwind development.
'It will be a small, low-key wedding at a place Rupert is very fond of. Elena also lives in Los Angeles, so it feels right for her, too.
'She is a beautiful person, inside and out, and a true intellectual, who worked for many years as a research professor. They talk a lot, and share a real curiosity about the world.'
Said another family acquaintance: 'Rupert is very happy. She's a genuinely lovely and smart person, he's the archetypal old man in a hurry, and no one knows what the future holds.
'So I think they've basically come to the conclusion there's no point hanging around.'
Invitations to the big day have already been sent out.
Guests, who are expected to include Rupert's six and Elena's three children, are likely to be served beef from Murdoch's 340,000-acre ranch in Montana, along with the 'remarkably refined wines' (to quote Moraga's website) harvested from the surrounding hillside, which retail for between $75 and $140 (£58-£110) per bottle.
An intimate wedding ceremony, at which Ms Zhukova will become the fifth Mrs Murdoch, is now to be held at Moraga on the afternoon of Saturday, June 1. Rupert Murdoch pictured with his second wife, Anna Murdoch Mann, who he married in 1967
Wedding guests are expected to include Rupert's six and Elena's three children. He married his third wife, Wendi Murdoch (pictured), in 1999. The marriage lasted 14 years
Comparisons will, inevitably, be drawn with Succession, the hit TV drama that was largely inspired by the occasionally fractious Murdoch clan.
But insiders describe the family as being 'intensely relaxed' about the impending nuptials.
'For the first time in an awfully long time, the kids actually like his choice of bride,' I'm told.
'Particularly Lachlan [the eldest son], who got to know Elena pretty well last summer, shortly after [she and Rupert] got together, when they spent time yachting around the Med with his family.'
The Murdoch clan also have little to fear in terms of how the development will affect their business interests.
'There's no chance of the marriage producing a child, the financial side of things are basically sewn up, and the question of who will inherit everything was finally sorted out back in September,' adds the source.
Back then, Rupert handed over the reins of the empire, which is valued at around $17 billion (£13billion), to Lachlan, the first son of his second wife, Anna.
Rupert then moved to an 'Emeritus Chairman' role. His businesses, which include a global stable of newspapers, including Britain's Times and Sun, along with a broadcasting arm with assets such as Fox News, are now controlled by a family trust.
The structure is designed so that, in the event of Murdoch's death, equal shares will be held by each of his four eldest children.
In addition to Lachlan, they are Prudence, daughter of first wife Patricia Booker, and Elisabeth and James, product of his 30-year marriage to Scottish-born Anna.
Elena's pedigree is similarly complex, not to mention glamorous.
In fact, Tatler once dubbed her 'Rupert Murdoch's ultimate power match' thanks to her position at the heart of an influential nexus encompassing the art world, Russian oligarchs and a famous Greek shipping dynasty.
Comparisons will, inevitably, be drawn with Succession, the hit TV drama that was largely inspired by the occasionally fractious Murdoch clan. Pictured: Rupert with his fourth wife, Jenny Hall, who he married in 2016
But insiders describe the family as being 'intensely relaxed' about the impending nuptials
She was born in Moscow to Jewish parents and originally came to the U.S. in 1991, after being offered a post at Baylor University in Texas during the Russian 'brain drain' that followed the fall of Communism. Her specialism was research into diabetes.
Elena brought her daughter, Dasha, with her. The girl's father Alexander Zhukov — Elena's ex-husband — remained behind in the former USSR.
Shortly after arriving, Elena had a boy and another girl, Yuri and Katya, via a short-lived relationship with an American named George Gause and, in 1994, moved to Los Angeles to take up a research job at UCLA, the city's most famous
