Chris and Gwyneth 'on verge of split'

Friends fear Gwyneth Paltrow and her rock star fiance Chris Martin are on the verge of parting, after a string of blazing rows brought on by the pressures of fame.

As Martin, 26, was today told to appear in court for damaging a photographer's car, it emerged that neighbours of Paltrow's Belgravia flat have reported a shouting match.

It is said to have ended with the actress, 30, telling Martin: "I can't go on like this".

The row came after the couple returned from a shopping trip in Knightsbridge which became a media circus when they were pursued by five photographers, and autograph hunters.

After the row, Martin flew out to start a tour of Australia with his band Coldplay.

Paltrow is believed to have made up with the singer and flown out to join him.

The couple's relationship is also under pressure since Paltrow is torn between living with Martin in London and returning to the US to be with her mother, Blythe Danner, after the recent death of her father, Bruce.

Martin will face court in Sydney on 8 October charged with malicious damage to the car of John Lister, 47.