Melinda French Gates: 'Outside' Factors Led to Divorce From Bill Gates

Melinda French Gates (Getty Images)

By    |   Thursday, 03 July 2025 12:31 PM EDT ET

Melinda French Gates has attributed her divorce from longtime husband, Bill Gates, to "things that happened" outside of their 27-year marriage.

The 60-year-old philanthropist spoke candidly about the split during Wednesday's episode of the "How to Fail with Elizabeth Day" podcast.

"When that voice would come — and it would come at different times because of things that had happened outside the marriage that I would later come to learn about — I kept pushing it away," French Gates said, according to the New York Post.

She acknowledged feeling obligated to keep the relationship going because of their three children and their shared work through the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

"We had a foundation, and that was big, and I believed in that work. I still believe in the work of the foundation," she said, adding that eventually she could not ignore her inner voice.

"At some point, I had to turn toward it, and I just knew it, and I knew it in my soul," she said.

It took a long time to conclude that her marriage to Bill Gates, 69, could not be repaired, French Gates added.

"I took marriage — and I still do — very, very seriously, and it wasn't just two of us involved, it was five of us," she said, referring to the pair's kids Jennifer, 28; Rory, 25; and Phoebe, 22.

In 1987, French Gates joined Microsoft as a product manager, which is where she first connected with Bill Gates. They soon developed a romantic relationship and were married in Hawaii in 1994, according to People. They revealed in 2021 that they were divorcing after having quietly separated the previous year.

"The divorce thing was miserable for me and Melinda for at least two years," Bill Gates said during an interview with The Times of London in January.

Elsewhere, Gates shared that he has become "more cheerful" in the years following their split but still considers it to be "the mistake I most regret."

Zoe Papadakis

Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.

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Melinda French Gates has attributed her divorce from longtime husband, Bill Gates, to "things that happened" outside of their 27-year marriage.
melinda french gates, bill gates, divorce, bill andmelinda gates foundation, microsoft
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2025-31-03
Thursday, 03 July 2025 12:31 PM
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