You are bound to have a very interesting life when it seems you have an inert knack for falling in love with famous, wealthy, and powerful men. The life that ensues comes with all the trappings of fame and fortune, but perhaps can equally be burdensome.
The persistent media attention, the scrutiny, and loss of privacy that comes with it may all add up to making your life not as rosy and smooth as others would think it to be. One woman that definitely knows a thing or two about having famous partners is Erica Packer. Before we get into the details of her high-profile relationships, let’s take you through a bit of Packer’s career.
Erica Packer Bio/Career
Packer was born Erica Baxter on the 10th of November 1977 in Gunnedah, Northwest New South Wales, Australia. She attended a local private girls’ school, Abbotsleigh.
Very little is known about her educational qualifications beyond this. However, what is certain is that she was clear about her path early in life. Erica began as a model featuring in various runways in Australia and gradually making her way up the social circles.
She then dabbled in music and in 2006, signed a multiple-album recording contract with SonyBMG Music Australia.
Her debut album titled Through My Eyes was released in 2007. The album produced by Audius Mtawairia spawned several singles including “Dreams”, “I Spy”, (co-written with famous UK songstress Natasha Bedingfield), and “I Don’t Feel a Thing”.
In Australia, the album received favorable reviews from critics but generally was not seen as a great success.
The album’s failure was linked to a lack of promotion. While it peaked at number 18 on the Australian Hitseekers Chart, it failed to chart on the ARIA Top 100 Albums Chart. Though her recording deal was to produce multiple albums, that record was the last the world ever heard from Erica Packer.
Married, Children, Divorce
By many standards, Erica Packer is considered to be a very attractive woman. She has attracted a handful of men her way, most of them fellow famous celebrities.
Back in 1995, before her music career kicked off, Erica Packer was believed to be in a relationship with actor Jason Donovan. However, it proved to be a short-lived one as they soon went separate ways.
Up next was producer Nellee Hooper whom she began seeing in 2000. Subsequently, they broke up and from 2003, rumors began to fly around town that she was dating Australia’s 8th richest man, billionaire businessman James Packer.
Their relationship went on and off for the next three years, ultimately leading to their marriage on 20 June 2007. Erica would become the second Mrs. James Packer. The billionaire was in a three-year union with Australian glamour model and fashion designer Jodhi Meares which ended in June 2002.
As expected, Erica and James Packer’s wedding was extravagant, to say the least. It was a five-day celebration with a price tag estimated at $15 million. Erica’s elaborate white John Galliano for Christian Dior gown took up $100,00 of that lot. The main wedding ceremony was held at Hotel de Ville, on the French Riviera.
Following was a carnival event that included beach parties and luxury boat cruises.
Among the 200 guests were celebrities like Tom Cruise and his then-wife Katie Holmes, Sarah and Lachlan Murdoch, broadcaster Alan Jones and more.
Like their wedding, the marriage lasted blissfully until September 2013 when the couple shook the media with news of their separation bringing an end to a 6-year marriage.
James Packer filed divorce papers and retained the $50 million family mansion in Sydney while Erica received a generous $100 million payout from the divorce despite asking for significantly less.
Their marriage produced three children; Emmanuelle Sheelagh (born 22 September 2012), Jackson Lloyd (born 2 February 2010), and daughter Indigo (born 27 July 2008).
Despite their divorce, the Australian billionaire keeps close ties with the mother of his three kids.
During her 40th birthday in 2017, she had an elaborate party at her ex-husband’s mansion in West Buttermilk Estate in Aspen. Attending the ceremony were close friends including actor Orlando Bloom, Sarah, and Lachlan Murdoch, and Vogue Australia’s fashion director Christine Centenera.
James Packer’s family including his mother Ros, sister Gretel, and niece Francesca also came to support the former model.
In Christmas 2017, James Packer reunited with his family by spending the festive season with them.
Erica Packer’s Relationship With Seal
Erica made the decision to move on from her marriage with her good friend, British singer Seal. They had begun dating in 2015, shortly after Seal had started working in Australia on the reality show, The Voice.
Roughly two years later, around April 2017, the couple broke up. Before their split, the couple who didn’t shy away from PDA’s were last seen on a vacation in Colorado in late 2016. Seal’s ex-wife, model Heidi Klum with whom he shares four kids also tagged along in that vacation and appeared very comfortable with her ex-husband’s girl Erica Packer.
Sources speculate that the reason for Packer’s split from Seal could’ve been because the British singer still nurtured feelings for his former flame Delta Goodrem his co-coach on The Voice Australia.
