Actually, Madonna has given Guy £50million, say her friends

GUY RITCHIE received a divorce settlement from Madonna of almost £50million, it was claimed today.

It is thought to be a record divorce payout for a man from his ex-wife.

The disclosure was made by a source close to Madonna angered by claims that Ritchie had walked away with little or none of the singer's estimated £300million fortune after their eight-year marriage ended in divorce last month.

According to the source, Ritchie received the couple's country estate Ashcombe House in Wiltshire and a cash lump sum. The source said: "Ritchie is getting between $60million (£40million) and $70million (£47million) in cash and property. The value is that big. It would be nice if somebody turned the table on this and set the record straight.

"He is not like some monk running around saying he doesn't want money. You don't get money unless you ask for it. And he asked for it. This is one of the biggest celebrity divorce settlements. It is said she is being horrible to him but he is hardly poor Guy." The source said Madonna, 50, was angered by the suggestion that Ritchie, 40, a successful film director in his own right, had got nothing.

"You can imagine how Madonna feels," said the source. "She has been very generous to him. It isn't about being acrimonious. It is just so inaccurate and unfair and people believe he walked away with nothing. The sums are huge. It is much bigger than the amount paid to Heather Mills by Sir Paul McCartney. Madonna just wants to make that point." Evening Standard revealed last month that Madonna and Ritchie had agreed a divorce deal.

At the time, one source said Ritchie had done a "Piper" in reference to Billie Piper, who walked away from her marriage to the multi-millionaire broadcaster Chris Evans without a penny.

That comment appears to have provoked today's decision by the source to "put the record straight".

But another source close to the negotiations said today that the claim of a settlement of up to $70million was too high, adding: "Ritchie gets Ashcombe House and a further $20million in cash which is roughly the value of their London house."

That would put Ritchie's payout at anywhere between £25million and £35million, depending on the value of Ashcombe House. "Perhaps Madonna's sources have got their maths wrong," said the source.

Discussions are continuing over residency and access of the couple's sons Rocco, eight, and David, three, who is adopted.