The 50-year-old singer was granted a "quickie" divorce on the grounds that her marriage to film director Ritchie irretrievably broke down because of his behaviour.

The 'decree nisi' took just 54 seconds at the Principal Registry of the High Court in London.

Both celebrities, who shirked the limelight this morning, agreed not to demand a financial settlement from one another.

In a sworn statement the court heard Madonna and Ritchie had not lived at the same address for six months but that Ritchie's behaviour was continuing.

Ritchie will not get a penny of Madonna's £300m fortune but there are plans to sell their four London houses, worth between £17m and £25m, and split the money.

Their 1,200 acre Ashcombe House estate in Wiltshire and £2.5m Punchbowl pub in Mayfair will stay in Ritchie's hands.

Madonna gets to keep an £8m house in Beverly Hills and two New York apartments.

As for the couple's three children Guy will have access to 12-year-old Lourdes, Madonna's daughter form an earlier relationship, but she will live with her mum in America.

They will share custody of Rocco, eight, and adopted David, three, between the UK and America.

As the divorce went through Madonna was in Philadelphia where she is on the latest leg of her Sticky and Sweet world tour.

Ritchie is in Liverpool with son Rocco, working on his latest film Sherlock Holmes.
Simon Bethel, from law firm Mills & Reeve, said the pair may have requested to "circumvent the normal divorce process" to limit press attention.

Recent high profile celebrity splits, such as ex-Beatle Sir Paul McCartney's divorce from Heather Mills, have been played out in the media glare.
But the 40-year-old British film director, believed to be worth £30m in his own right, prioritised how the pair's two boys will divide their time post-settlement.

Senior District Judge Philip Waller, who gave the go ahead for the divorce, said he was satisfied that the court did not need to exercise its powers under the Children Act nor give any directions under the Matrimonial Causes Act.
This suggests the couple reached a mutual settlement over their assets and the children before the divorce.

Source: Yahoo, Sky News