AMANDA PLATELL: This is what I'd whisper in Rupert Murdoch's ear

AMANDA PLATELL: This is what I’d whisper in Rupert Murdoch’s ear if I were his daughter…

News that Rupert Murdoch is soon to marry a woman 26 years his junior got me — and I’m sure lots of other grown-up daughters — thinking.

How would I feel if my own dear elderly dad had shared such joyful news with me? Well, first of all, I’d have been happy for him. Dad was 91 when he died — and Rupert is 92.

My parents’ rock-solid marriage lasted 72 years, while this will be Murdoch’s fifth trip down the aisle.

But in a different world, I’d still have welcomed Dad finding love later in life. Why shouldn’t any elderly divorced father enjoy a little sunshine in his twilight years — even if, as in the case of Rupert and his fiancee Ann Lesley Smith, they’ve known each other only a matter of months?

That said, I’d want some reassurances. I’d need to be confident my father’s intended wasn’t simply out for his inheritance. In Dad’s case, that was £400,000. In Murdoch’s, the fortune is some £17.75 billion: but the same principle applies.

Rupert Murdoch (left)  is engaged to Ann Lesley Smith (right), a woman 26 years his junior 

I’m sure all this is the last thing on Ann Lesley’s mind. And no doubt Rupert’s six children will also find solace in the fact that she is wealthy in her own right. But whatever the circumstances, I’d still have urged my dad to tread carefully.

Goodness knows, then, how the Murdoch children must feel. Yesterday we learnt of the battle between Ann Lesley and her stepdaughters from her second marriage, exclusively revealed in the Mail.

The legal details are too complex for me, but the gist is that Ann Lesley and the daughters of her deceased husband, Chester Smith, were embroiled in a fight in the courts over his estate. She was accused of ‘financial elder abuse’, which I think means taking advantage of an old guy, but which was never proved. She denied the claims and the matter was ultimately settled, with no admission of liability.

During her ‘rags-to-riches’ life, Ann Lesley has found wealth, then God (she’s a devout Christian), then Murdoch. Praise the Lord! This happy new union will make it eight marriages between Rupert and Ann Lesley. ‘It’s not my first rodeo,’ was how she put it. Good for her — and good for him for still trusting in everlasting love.

But if I were Rupert’s children, while wishing them every joy, I would also be gently whispering into his ear: ‘For God’s sake, Dad: make sure it’s fifth time lucky.’

Whoops, no undies in Kate’s Underworld

Brave of actress Kate Beckinsale to turn up to a gala celebrating young American designers wearing nothing underneath her sheer sliver of a dress. What a body — but what a shame there isn’t a body of work to go with it. Kate’s film franchise is called Underworld. Is that why she appeared without any undies? 

Brave of actress Kate Beckinsale to turn up to a gala celebrating young American designers wearing nothing underneath her sheer sliver of a dress

Defying Cate expectations

After weeks looking spectacular on the red carpet, how refreshing to see Cate Blanchett out in London with greasy hair and no slap. She’s just like the rest of us gals, if a bit richer, a bit more talented, cleverer, more charismatic, more beautiful . . . OK, stop already. 

Cate Blanchett looks almost unrecognisable as she is spotted out in London

Shoot ’em all, John 

Snooty film critics give the new John Wick movie a derisory one star, saying: ‘Bang! Bang! Bang! Er, that’s it.’ But that’s precisely why we love Keanu Reeves in the role. And if Wick does not kill more men than die in the opening sequence of Saving Private Ryan, we fans will be very disappointed. 

Westminster wars 

As she grilled Boris over Partygate, Harriet Harman looked stunning, channelling Diane Keaton as Annie in The First Wives Club. Annie was the fabulously dim one.

Despite predictions that Boris would be destroyed, he came out fighting and over three hours landed most of the punches.

He reminded us why he was such a vote-winner — and how Rishi Sunak betrayed not just Boris but the Tories, who are facing electoral Armageddon.

A new low even for Alastair Campbell. Replying to the question, ‘Does anyone actually believe Boris nearly died of Covid?’ the ex-spin doctor says: ‘No.’

I know a nurse who treated Boris — and he did. Some also claim that when he summoned colleagues to his bedside, he barred Michael Gove.

Weeks before becoming Labour leader, Keir Starmer signed a letter demanding 50 dangerous offenders not be deported to Jamaica. Seven went on to commit more serious crimes here. This is the man who could be in charge of our broken asylum system?

Harry’s latest humiliation 

Fresh from being lampooned by South Park and with his and Meghan’s popularity tanking in the U.S., Prince Harry is to be further humiliated with a satirical book, Spare Us! A Harrody.

It mocks: ‘In order to get the privacy he so craved, he has written a frostbite-and-all book that . . . exposes every shouting match, fist-fight, betrayal, teddy bear, awkward hug and tear-stained wedding rehearsal . . . All for privacy!’ Crikey, it’s enough to send poor Harry back on the wacky baccy.

Fresh from being lampooned by South Park and with his and Meghan’s popularity tanking in the U.S., Prince Harry is to be further humiliated with a satirical book, Spare Us! A Harrody

After crashing his car, Hollywood legend Dick Van Dyke could be forced to retake his driving test.

Behind the wheel at 97? You must be kidding.

No nonagenarian should be driving. My dad said that when his licence was taken away, he felt like they’d cut off his legs. Better that, we told him, than having some innocent person’s legs mangled in a crash.

After crashing his car, Hollywood legend Dick Van Dyke could be forced to retake his driving test

Proudly showing off his latest tattoo, Brooklyn Beckham — I call him ‘100 Tats, No Job’ — reveals a huge inking of his wife on his arm. If actress-heiress Nicola ever tires of the budding ‘chef’, he’ll have a hell of a job getting it removed. 

Proudly showing off his latest tattoo, Brooklyn Beckham — I call him ‘100 Tats, No Job’ — reveals a huge inking of his wife on his arm

Coldplay’s Chris Martin eats only one meal a day — lunch — as that’s what Bruce Springsteen does at 73 and he’s jealous of The Boss’s bod. Sorry, Chris, but having seen Bruce in my gym on one of his London visits, he has a better body than almost any man I’ve seen in a sweaty vest. 

Sense at last! World Athletics boss Seb Coe says ‘male-to-female transgender athletes’ will be banned from all female competitions to ‘prioritise fairness’. And well done to Olympian Sharron Davies, who suffered horrific online abuse for campaigning on this issue. Sharron wins gold for her courage. 

After Coco the American Bully savaged a police horse, owner Hakan Niyazi insists his savage dog is ‘my little girl’, friendly and harmless. Try telling that to the families of five victims killed by the closely related American Bully XL breed in Britain in the past two years alone. American Bullies should be banned. 

To the sceptics who question the wisdom of replacing the hilarious Matt Lucas with the larger-than-life Alison Hammond on Bake Off, I say: Leave her alone! She has enough energy and warmth to heat all the ovens in the tent. 

Hurrah for Harry Kane, who became England’s record goalscorer with his 54th goal, in a match against Italy. In a world of selfie-obsessed, egotistical footballers, Harry’s the finest. He’s had the same girlfriend, now wife, for years, and shown the same loyalty to his team, whether it be England or Spurs. Players like Harry remind us it’s still a beautiful game. 

Hurrah for Harry Kane, who became England’s record goalscorer with his 54th goal, in a match against Italy

Just wondering how the animal-hugging eco-warriors are going to feel when they learn one of the barristers boasting he will never prosecute them is Jolyon Maugham KC. Yes, the same Jolyon who narrowly avoided prosecution in 2019 after admitting he clubbed a fox to death with a bat. 

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