Melinda French admits her divorce from Bill Gates was painful — but these days, she’s focused on the work she still wants to do.
In an interview with Elle published on Monday, March 17, French acknowledged that “divorces are painful,” adding that the end of a marriage is “not something I would wish on any family.” Despite the pain she has endured, French was excited to speak about the work she’s done since her 2021 split.
One topic French, 60, is invested in is women’s health. “Why do we have Viagra and Cialis and whatever else is out there, and why have we not looked at menopause, something every woman will go through?” she asked.
She’s also moved by politics, especially by the idea of getting more women elected at the city, state and federal level. (French is a registered Independent but says she voted for Kamala Harris in the 2024 election.)
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French also reminisced on the end of her 27-year marriage to Gates, saying that the pair took a trip together months before their split. She also shared that she realized the house they’d rented belonged to a couple who was no longer together. She ended up Googling the pair, curious about how they were doing.
Courtesy of Melinda Gates/InstagramWhen asked what she would hope someone would find about her in the same situation five years from now, French answered, “She’s thriving on the other side of a divorce. Just thriving.”
In a January 2025 interview with the Times of London, Gates said the pair’s divorce was “the mistake I most regret.”
“I encouraged Melinda to be a little calmer than my mother was, but we were both quite driven,” Gates said at the time. “I spent more time with the kids than my dad did, but the ratio was still 10:1, with Melinda doing most things for the kids. We had a great time.”
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He added, “There is a certain wonderfulness to spending your entire adult life with one person because of the memories and depth of things you have done and having kids together. When Melinda and I met, I was fairly successful but not ridiculously successful — that came during the time that we were together. So, she saw me through a lot.”
Gates and French met in 1987 when she worked for his Microsoft organization. French ultimately left Microsoft after the split.
When it comes to his biggest adult failures, Gates also said, “You would have to put that at the top of the list. There are others but none that matter. The divorce thing was miserable for me and Melinda for at least two years.”
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