Among the highlights – or the lowlights if you’re a Murdoch – were the revelation that Rupert’s plan to disinherit three of his four eldest children was dubbed “Project Family Harmony”, that Rupert’s lawyer had accused the three children of being “white, privileged, multibillionaire trust-fund babies”, and that James now viewed his father as a “misogynist”.
When some of the mind games and manoeuvres that turned a Murdoch family “retreat” into an ordeal appeared in Succession, the TV drama about squabbling family members of a right-wing media company, members of the real-life family started to suspect each other of leaking details to the writers.
The fallout from this family saga will not just be felt by Rupert’s six children (two by his third wife, Wendi Deng, inherit an economic rather than controlling stake) but by a vast business empire which includes Fox News in the US, HarperCollins and news titles, including the Times and the Sun in the UK.
“I think that we’re clearly heading toward that [collapse]…Lachlan will be fired and the rest of the company will be dismantled.” Following the excoriating court ruling, Rupert has to either survive until he turns 99 in 2030 when the trust expires, or reach a settlement with James, Liz and Prue, dubbed the “objecting children” in court.
The mogul’s four eldest children – Lachlan, James, Elisabeth and Prudence – were set to inherit the family firm following Rupert’s death.
