Jules Neale shares family update as she gears up for big Melbourne Cup moment

Exclusive: Jules Neale arrived at the Melbourne Cup looking red hot and giving an update on family life in Perth with her two kids, as whispers fly that she and ex Lachie Neale could possibly attend the same event.

“I’m just doing the one day and then back to mum life,” she told nine.com.au from inside the G.H Mumm Marquee on Tuesday.

“This is my first Melbourne Cup,” she added.

For Jules, 36, being a part of the day is a real “bucket list” moment.

“I love Melbourne, I hate the cold – but I love Melbourne,” she explained.

“I love coming to these fun events, it’s always like a holiday with the event, so it’s always nice to get away.”

The hairdresser’s appearance at the biggest event in the Spring Racing carnival just three days after her ex-husband, AFL star Lachie Neale attended Derby Day with his new girlfriend Emma Field.

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But Jules is set to have her own big moment, as she undertakes the champagne tap moment in Champagne house Mumm’s marquee.

She’s already got a game plan for how to handle it, after watching what Carrie Bickmore did over the weekend.

“I didn’t realise that you could probably get wet,” she explained.

“I’m gonna try and copy Carrie and do a bit of a ‘tap tap’ then run away.”

Sharing a glimpse of her look on social media before arriving, the Perth-based hairdresser went for a bold red frock.

The flirty little number hugged her curves and fanned out with a fun feathered detail around the hem, which hit her on the calf.

The look was finished with a matching red headband, and shoes – giving it some real wow factor.

For Jules it’s a quick in and out trip, heading back home to Perth to her kids tomorrow.

And while it is a quick trip, she confirmed that things are really going well for her in Perth right now.

“I’m in the new house with the kids now,” she added.

“We’re settled into our routine, I think next year will be really nice just kind of continuing that.”

And while all eyes have been Jules, there will be a lot to talk about with her ex-husband and new partner Emma Field expected to pop in as well or whether they will steer clear to avoid an awkward run-in.

The new couple made their debut over the weekend at Darby Day, giving the most public launch of their relationship to date.

Lachie and Emma attempted to keep their relationship under wraps during the beginning, but things went public after the Brisbane Lions won the 2026 AFL Grand Final.

Emma made it clear she was there to support her man in the stands and the couple have since made several declarations of their relationship status online too.

Jules and Lachie split in December 2025, with the AFL player making a public statement about their marriage breakdown during a press conference in January.

At the time rumours of infidelity swirled, and Jules broke her silence and spoke out about her side of the story on the Pretty Sure podcast with Adelle Petropoulos in late August.

The mum-of-two used the platform to “speak her truth” about the alleged cheating scandal that involved her husband, Lachie and her best friend, Tess Crosley, 30.

In the podcast, Jules alleged Crosley and Lachie had an ongoing romantic affair for four months.

While Jules ultimately called time on the marriage in December, she made it clear the cracks had started much earlier.

“It wasn’t the first time for us, which is awful,” she claimed in the interview with Petropoulos.

The mother-of-two explained while it would appear to many that she “packed up and left with the kids” when Lachie confirmed their separation in January 2026, that wasn’t the case.

Just hours after Jules’ podcast went live, a teaser for Tess’ own tell-all podcast with the Daily Mail went live, with her sharing her side of the story for the first time.

Tess chose to keep the details of her side relatively brief during the one-hour interview, but reflected on the moment the private matter became a national story, describing it as a “really dark time in my life”.

Tess did not confirm this nor reveal any details about the exact nature of her relationship with Lachie, but she did claim she was only friends with the couple for about a year before the scandal unfolded.

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