Madonna at the premiere of her short film, “Filth and Wisdom,” October 2008. Photo credit: WENN.
More juicy tidbits from “confidantes” on either side of the Madonna/Guy Ritchie divorce just keep flowing. You have to wonder – isn’t the first criteria of being someone’s confidante the ability to keep one’s mouth shut? Anyway, it seems like forces within both camps are doing some heavy duty spin patrol, trying to make both of them look like the wronged party. Conventional wisdom leads me to believe that just like most couples, it’s somewhere in the middle.
On Team Ritchie, his pals told People the the director is relieved that the facade is finally over, so he can get on with his life and focus on his children and his new film.
Guy Ritchie is “doing fine” since news of his impending divorce with Madonna hit the news, a pal tells PEOPLE.
“[The divorce] is news to you and everyone else, but for Guy this has been a long time coming,” the friend adds. “I think he’s sort of relieved that it’s all out there. He doesn’t have to fake it anymore.”
As Madonna, 50, was back on stage in Boston, Ritchie, 40, spent Wednesday filming his movie Sherlock Holmes outside London.
Ritchie is “very excited about his film, and he’s focused on that and getting on with it,” says the pal. “For him, everything is really the same as before, only with more photographers. Yesterday was insane.”
As for Madonna, a “close friend” revealed to The Sun that the singer knew her marriage was over after her highly publicized fall from a horse on her birthday three years ago. Apparently, Guy’s ambivalence toward her injuries sustained was so upsetting, their relationship was never the same.
MADONNA’S marriage began sliding towards divorce after her hubby’s “unsympathetic” reaction when she tumbled from a horse, friends say.
The agonised Queen of Pop felt GUY RITCHIE showed a “complete lack of love and sympathy” after she snapped eight bones in the horror fall.
The incident reared its head again during recent arguments – and a close confidante told The Sun how Madge spat at Guy: “Did you ever actually love me?”
Sources say the aftershocks from the 2005 accident sparked the rows that ended their 7½year marriage and saw the pair confirm The Sun’s exclusive that they will divorce.
A close family friend said yesterday: “From the moment Madonna fell from that horse, their marriage was doomed.
“If you can pinpoint an exact event or incident which spelled the death knell for them as a couple, Madonna’s horse-riding accident was it. Every other row the couple had following that boiled down to what happened that summer.”
The family friend said: “Madonna was in a huge amount of pain and expected Guy to drop everything to be at her bedside.
“In her mind that is what every husband should do to support his wife when she has been through a traumatic, possibly life-threatening, experience. But Guy approached the whole thing in what she now calls, ‘A very British way’.
“Instead of smothering her with sympathy he said, ‘Come on darling, you’re a tough bird. You’ll be back on the horse in no time’.
“Guy’s approach was that a few broken bones is no big deal – and that there was no point in making a drama out of a crisis.
“But in Madonna’s mind, she could have been killed, and she wanted the full works and to be lavished with love and attention.
“She was so furious at what she saw as Guy’s lack of support and cruelty that she told him she was wrong to marry him as he couldn’t possibly be her soulmate.” Madonna told after the fall how her “whole skeleton collapsed” – admitting: “I cried a lot, mostly from pain.”
Somehow, I can’t see Madonna responding well to being coddled by her man, but maybe that’s because of the tough-as-nails persona she has built for herself over the decades. But I do understand the description of that certain moment in a marriage when you suddenly realize that the other person is either wrong for you, or not putting their all into the relationship anymore. For me, it was when my ex forgot my birthday. We’d been together for 8 years and he’d never needed so much as a reminder- but that year, he completely forgot it. I knew then it was the beginning of the end. It’s a terrible feeling! Oh well – at least these two don’t have to pretend anymore. Not that Madonna was all that convincing anyway.
Photos of Guy Ritchie on the set of his new Sherlock Holmes movie this week, courtesy of Bauergriffin. Photos of Madonna and Guy at the premiere of his film RocknRolla in September provided by WENN.
It’s a very bad feeling when the perso you expected to support you the most in time of crisis just seem to neglect you…i can relate to Madonna in that feeling…
Guy’s always been a bit like that with her tho – downplaying her celebrity etc. Look at the way he nicknamed her Madge!! He’s definitely got some of the alpha male in him, that’s for sure and I reckon there was a real power struggle between those two really. He doesnt come across to me as a doormat at all. Quite the opposite. And I dont ever think he’s been ‘in awe of her’. Well good luck to them, I hope they sort out the settlement quickly for the sake of the kids.
To prove my point – Madonna’s never gone for guys who are walkovers – she’s attracted to strong men with tough characters… look at Sean Penn and Warren Beatty. And now she’s been linked to a football player. There’s always two sides to every story and I’m sure he’s partly to blame for their breakup. British guys generally arent very touchy-feely emotional people. And I speak from a lot of experience. My fiance is a Brit but he’s a metrosexual and loves shopping as much as me but its taken me a long time to find someone like that!!!
I really feel bad for Madonna, she was the last person i thought would end up this way. She seemed to appear to be this tough material girl, and now this comes out. Wow. I guess we all loved to be cuddles and loved spoiled. Who doesn’t want that honestly. I just hope she doesn’t break down now. Now that she’s 50 and what not. I hope she doesn’t regret her marriage.
Oh holy God. It’s almost impossible to feel anything but contempt for Madonna. This is such bullshit – what she sees as lack of sympathy and attention on Guy’s part was probably Guy failing to indulge the endless procession of ribbon-bedecked Kabbalah-wallahs that grouped to adore at the Madge-shrine at the time of her accident, terrified that their cash cow might croak…er…deeply concerned at her injuries etc etc…. 🙄
How can she not see that this is not the way to get people on side? It’s all about her, no one else’s feelings count for anything. If she stopped with the victim thing and just spoke truthfully about the disparity in their lifestyles, and how it was unsustainable, and how it’s very sad for everyone concerned, then I could feel genuine sympathy for her.
Such drama… Madge must be losing her memory in her old age (I’m being facetious,she’s not that old)…she conveniently forgets when they broke up BEFORE they were married because he didn’t want to marry her. So… for her to say she ‘should’ve never married him’ is ridiculous. She chased that man until he couldn’t run anymore. 🙄
As far as the riding incident, once I found out my spouse was ok, I probably wouldn’t continue the ‘oh poor baby’ routine either. What a narcissist. I’d say it all again, but G said it best. Cut the crap Madonna
Poor Madge, this is the first time I really feel for her. The fact that she didn’t get any major damage doesn’t mean that she didn’t come close to death… now, if that doesn’t get your partner close to you, what could ever do it?
wanting your partner to show you love and sympathy during a crisis is NOT the same as wanting to be worshiped, have a shrine built for you… etc… how retarded and callous… 🙄
as far as forcing someone to marry you… again, you people sound like this is the middle ages… nobody can FORCE anyone to marry them… why is it somehow always the women’s fault? we broads and our bewitchery… 🙄 🙄 🙄
Definately sounds like M’s people have looser lips.
Yes, usually a crisis shows you people’s true character BUT i feel she should have known his BEFORE she married him! DUH
It shows us that’s been her biggest drama- “WHAT, my precious bones, they broke? it can’t be, my B-12 shots, kabbalah water and deep mystical prayers were supposed to prevent all of this”.
I bet Guy secretly loved it and thought -She stunk at riding, she fell off- Ha ha (Nelson from Simpsons)
Im a baby when I get sick, too. I am just as hurt when people don’t empathize with me, pretty much for any reason… if words hurt me, and others dont empathize I’ll react the same way.
It is self-centered but really if the other cares they naturally empathize without effort.
So the lack of it tells you what? Youre not valued. And why be with someone who doesnt value you.
Christina – Well yes, that’s of course if you choose to believe Madge’s ‘poor me lying all alone in a heap of broken bones’ version of events here. Which I don’t. What she sees as hurtful neglect was more than likely him trying to get her to be positive. Plenty of photographic and print evidence around at the time which showed genuine concern and upset on Guy’s part.
RAN, right, it would make all the difference, wouldn’t it?
And she honestly thinks A-Rod is going to be more loving and attentive? Good luck.
And one other point, when you’re a narcissistic manipulator who can’t manipulate someone any more, the only thing left in their armoury is to attack.
This is Madonna, who is totally obsessed about her body, so you could see how she would freak out at being injured. It would really affect her ability to perform at concerts.
It was after this that she began the obsessive exercising. Personally I think her body looks gross–all those sinewy muscles, bulging veins, and the grayish skin color is really unattractive.
Guy seems very British–stiff upper lip, weekends in the country, having a pint of beer at the pub. Madonna was probably attracted to that at first, but then found it a little too low-key for her taste.
I think this is actually really sad. I’m sure, behind closed doors, she’s as sensitive as any woman. She could have certainly died from this or been paralyzed. I remember how freaked out she was by the fall — remember when Letterman made her get on a horse again on his show? She was super vulnerable and freaked out.
From the Daily Mirror:
The ‘RocknRolla’ filmmaker told friends:
“I’m afraid the laughs in our life together were long gone. She’s obsessed with her own public image, obsessed with being seen as some kind of global soothsayer. It’s silly, she’s a pop star.”
“I just wanted a regular husband and wife thing. But it was always a great song and dance just to do ordinary stuff. There was a time when she used to have a sense of humor about herself. In the last few years she just got angry. In the end, we had no proper family life at all. We were two different people, living two different lives.”
Agree Geronimo, on all your comments here.
PJ, I think you have a point. I broke my leg, sprained my other knee and tore two ACL’s in a fall from an extension ladder. Physical therapy for 4 months. I was in better shape after going through all of that and kept my previous weight off.
But I wasn’t obsessive like Madge, and it didn’t affect my marriage.
geronimo… you’re just speculating… i’m making my statement just based on the story that is written…what is written may or may not be true, and that’s irrelevant… what’s relevant is that the situation as it is described in this story portrays nothing of diva behavior… i would say most people would feel the same way she is “portrayed” to have felt in this story… if not all…
i think people are just adding their own interpretations because they may not like madonna… but i hope they don’t truly feel they’re “indulging” someone if they sympathize with their injuries…
“..what is written may or may not be true, and that’s irrelevant….”
😯 Irrelevant? Not to me it isn’t since my comments are based entirely on it being a gross exaggeration.
I remember that they went to a premiere or some event right after it happened – Madonna was walking around in a daze, and she even admitted to a reporter that Guy had made her take some painkillers.
I remember it because Guy seemed really sweet that night, never leaving her side, making sure that a clearly disoriented Madonna was being taken care of – it was the most sympathetic I’ve ever seen her. And Guy looked like a doting husband.
Ah, well. It’s getting juicy, girls. 😛
I knew her marriage was over because she didn’t marry a woman.
Van D- How do you know she should be married to a woman? Seriously, your comments are so rude and annoying.
i’m just saying we have to go on what’s written.. there’s no use in speculating… we weren’t there and none of us know madonna personally…
i think it’s not whiny for ANYBODY to want attention and sympathy when they are hurt… whether they have a reputation for being “controling, manipulative” or whatever else she’s accused of…
i assume one’s spouse marries you for a reason… and it’s not cuz they think you are “controlling and manipulative”. so i would hope that Guy would have been able to muster up some sympathy even if we can’t…
Guy couldn’t have ever expected a normal “husband and wife” thing with madonna. He can’t be that dumb to have ever expected that from her, knowing who and what she is as an entertainer. Any normal husband in his right mind would be at his wife’s side when she is as injured as Madonna was, British or not. My husband is British and would drop everything to help me out if I get the flu, let alone break a bone!
With that said, this is more speculation on the he said/she said issue and none of us will ever know the actual reason.
@vdantev: no, it’s because she didn’t marry a mirror…
I’m on Guy’s side. Honestly, while he should have smypathised with her (though I’m taking this with a grain of salt considering we have no idea who those “sources” are), the British aren’t as affectionate as Americans. She’s been pretending to be British forever but she isn’t, he is. And honestly as much as i lvoe to be coddled when I’m sick, with an injury such as hers I think it’s better to tell her she can do. She’s stronger than all of it, she can over come. It would make me personally more determined (if only to go kick my bf’s a$$ for it).
Besides she seems ot need someone to be in awe of her. She’s done nothing except bring down his career after having him direct her in a couple of truly nausea inducing movies.
Good riddance Guy, you can do better.
(And I love the fact that she just goes out and adopts another child when he said he didn’t want one. That would be a deal breaker for me. That’s a family commtiment, not a solo. And now he is tied to this kid he didn’t really want. I’m giving Guy the benefit of the doubt and am going to say he’ll still take care of David even still, but how low is it to force that kind of decision on someone?-again this story is taken with a grain of salt, i’m commenting on it as if it were true-not saying it is)
Madonna only loves herself, and her money. Too many issues working against them: age gap, culture gap. ARod is just a cover. Maybe she’ll eventually out herself and go with a younger woman.
Okay…I have been riding my entire life. I have a lovely photo of a two year old me duct taped to a saddle!! It is actually cute but in retrospect I think it could be considered abuse. (joking about abuse not being duct taped to a horse)
The first time I broke my collarbone everyone was scared to death, the next time they wanted to know if I wanted to eat dinner before going to the hospital. It sounds as if his comment was spot on. When you fall off you have to get back on….that sounds like what he told her in an encouraging way.
Madonna wants slaves. Good luck getting sympathy from A-Rod dude was running around on his pregnant wife.
Good luck to Guy. Feel sorry for the kids and the little Banda boy
she said americans were stupid/ignorant, remember? oh now trying to be casual about a scary situation is “british”? the reason that person said she should marry a woman is because M is either bi or playing straight if u read her bio her 1st sexual experiences were w a girlfriend & also she preferred gay men than the jocks from school AND she seduced her gay 25-yrs-her-senior dance teacher! a star that big $ egotistic will most likely not b lucky in love, sorry