UK's Marie Claire reports Madonna has called in one of Britain's top - and toughest - divorce lawyers to kick-start proceedings to separate from her husband of eight years, Guy Ritchie.

Nicholas Moyston QC is the man who helped Heather Mills, Earl Spencer and Ray Parlour in their high-profile divorces.

Sources have suggested that Guy and Madonna do not have a pre-nuptial agreement in place, which would leave Guy eligible to walk away with up to half of Madonna's fortune. According to Forbes magazine, the Queen of Pop earned $72 million last year alone.