Melinda French Gates has responded to her billionaire ex-husband’s recent admission that their split was the biggest regret of his life, saying that their divorce was “necessary”.
In January, the Microsoft CEO said in an interview that their 2021 divorce after 27 years together ranked the greatest failure of his life, saying it was “at the top of the list”.
Melinda has addressed those comments, arguing that the split was “something that was necessary”.
“If you can’t live your values out inside your most intimate relationship, it was necessary,” she told The Times.
She continued: “I don’t even quite know what to make of that statement, so I’m not going to comment on what he says. He’s got his own life. I have my life now. I am very happy.”
Melinda added that she started to experience panic attacks during their divorce, adding: “When you’re leaving a marriage, it’s very, very hard. And the negotiations were tough.”
She revealed that she began seeing a therapist in 2014 when she had her first panic attack while having lunch with Gates when they were still together.
“I’d heard of people having panic attacks and I didn’t know if it was a real thing.”
She added that she initially thought that therapy was for other people, but then when she got into the process, she realised: “No, it doesn’t mean I’m damaged. It means I’ve been through some difficult things that I need to figure out.”
The pair, who married in 1994, share three children who are now adults: Jennifer, 28, Rory, 25, and Phoebe, 22, as well as two grandchildren.
Bill has been in a relationship with Paula Hurd, the widow of the former Oracle CEO Mark Hurd, since 2022, but Melinda is single and told the publication she is enjoying dating.
“I have had so many friends introduce me to people and it’s been lovely.”
Asked whether men are intimidated by her wealth and status when she meets them, she replied: “I’m sure some are and some aren’t. But I’m not really looking for somebody who would be intimidated by my status. That kind of rules them out, right?”
Bill has never spoken about what caused their divorce, though he admitted in 2021 that he had an affair with an employee during their marriage.
Before he and Melinda split, Bill also met a number of times with convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, who died by suicide in a Manhattan jail in 2019.
Gates said the men talked about global health initiatives, but Melinda later told Gayle King on CBS Mornings in 2022 that her husband’s relationship with Epstein played a role in their divorce.
She said she met with Epstein ”exactly one time” in 2013 at his Manhattan home, and it “unsettled“ her.
However, Melinda acknowledged their divorce wasn’t down to “one specific thing”.
“There just came a point in time where there was enough there that I realised it wasn’t healthy and I couldn’t trust what we had,” she explained.
Bill addressed those comments at the time, telling CBS News he will “always be sorry for the pain that I caused Melinda and our family.”
