Health issues

James Packer’s ex says he must be ‘really suffering’ with mental health

Mar 22, 2018

James Packer's ex Tziporah Malkah has opened up. Source: Channel 7/Sunrise.

James Packer’s ex fiancee has revealed her shock at his resignation, amid a battle with mental health – and praised him for speaking out.

The Aussie billionaire stepped down as director of Crown Resorts, which owns casinos around Australia, this week – citing personal reasons.

Now, Tziporah Malkah, formerly known as Kate Fischer, admitted he must be “really suffering” to have stepped away from his business, which she claims was always the “love of his life”.

Appearing on Channel 7’s Sunrise, she told the show’s hosts: “It’s a good thing that James has given the reason that he’s stepping back because of the stigma that’s still around about mental health issues.”

She added: “I was so shocked. For James, to step away from his business, the man I knew then… that’s the love of his life he was never going to give it up. For a man who’s so passionate, he must be really, really suffering.”

#EXCLUSIVE: "It's a good thing he's given the reason he's stepping back because of the stigma around mental health issues"

Tziporah Malkah on James Packer's shock resignation. pic.twitter.com/dh7XTsilpR

— Sunrise (@sunriseon7) March 21, 2018

She said: “There were times he’d come home from work and be very withdrawn, very uncommunicative. For me, being so young and not understanding the business world and the pressures – particularly such a big business – I didn’t understand. But he would really go into his shell… sometimes for days at a time.”

Malkah explained, while Packer’s father adored him, he did pile the pressure on him – with them both having very different approaches to the business. She said James would often return from work and complain about his father shouting at him during the day.

Hitting back at criticism from some, who questioned how anyone who is as “rich” as the star, could have mental health issues, she used the example of Robin Williams who tragically committed suicide after a lengthy career as one of the world’s top comedians.

Revealing she’s suffered with mental illness herself, she went on: “You can treat mental illness in the same way as physical illness… But admitting it, and coming to terms with it, is one of the hardest things.”

James Packer has resigned to concentrate on his mental health. Source: Getty.

The pair got engaged in 1996, however they called it 0ff two years later after five years together.

It comes after Crown announced his unexpected departure in a brief statement to the Australian Securities Exchange on Wednesday, saying that Packer had personal reasons for resigning. “We have appreciated James’ contribution to the board and respect his decision to step down from his role as director at this time,” Crown’s executive chairman John Alexander said.

But a spokesman for Packer’s private investment company Consolidated Press Holdings told news outlets that Packer was taking a step back from all commitments to focus on his mental health. “Mr Packer is suffering from mental health issues,” the spokesman said.

In October last year, the 50-year-old son of late Australian tycoon Kerry Packer spoke out about his financial and family troubles, as well as his failed relationship with pop diva Mariah Carey, in a very frank interview with The Weekend Australian Magazine.

“Two years ago I was terrified. I had $2.3 billion of debt at CPH [Consolidated Press Holdings, his private company], over $3 billion of debt at Crown, I’d just appointed Rob [Rankin as chairman of Crown], Macau was falling over and [sister] Gretel was on my doorstep,” Packer said to The Australian‘s Damon Kitney. “Then a year later I’ve got China falling apart, the Australian casino businesses missing budgets by big amounts, I’ve got Mariah breaking up with me and I’m thinking ‘f…’.”

It’s been a tough few years for Packer, who split up with his wife Erica Baxter in 2013, then became embroiled in a multi-year battle with his sister Gretel in 2015 over the division of the family business empire. Then in 2016 some Crown staff were detained in China for allegedly breaching the country’s gaming regulations, and Crown’s Asian resorts suffered during the downturn that hurt the region’s entire gambling sector.

Things didn’t improve in 2017, when Packer’s relationship with Carey, and their acrimonious split, attracted media attention around the world, and the wealthy businessman went from dramatically slimmer, reportedly after lap band surgery, to much heavier – all of which was played out in front of tabloid cameras.

But Packer remains ranked among the top 10 wealthiest people in the country, with a net worth estimated at $3.9 billion.