From CELE|BITCHY — What? He has boyish good looks, and charm [I think...]. Rumor mill is going strong as to how this Madonna era will end. Check out some of these fine details, after the jump!

Madonna hires one of Britain’s most notorious divorce attorneys

Madonna has been married to director Guy Ritchie for about seven and a half years, and the two have been plagued by breakup rumors ever since. They’ve somehow managed to make it work, scheduling dinners at high profile restaurants and alerting the paparazzi whenever another split story surfaces. It may soon be long-overdue curtains for the couple. A source quoted by Holy Moly claims that Madonna has hired divorce lawyer to Britain’s elite, Nicholas Mostyn. The wiry singer was seen at Mostyn’s office about a week and a half ago. Mostyn has served on high profile divorce cases in the UK, representing Paul McCartney, and the triumphant spouses of Earl Spencer and Ray Parlour.

It is thought that Madonna and Guy have no prenup. It looks like Mr. Madonna is about to get a pretty decent payday even if Madonna has hired the best lawyer in Britain:

Suggestions made seem to indicate that, surprisingly, Madonna and Guy do NOT have a pre-nup in place, leaving Guy in line to walk away with up to half of Madge’s fortune (according to Forbes she earned $72m last year alone).

Long standing rumours of a rift between the couple are finally confirmed with this news, as Holy Moly’s sources suggest nothing more than “growing apart” as the reason for the split. They have spent increasing amounts of time apart with both Madonna’s new album and tour and Guy’s revived movie career are cited as reasons. The adoption of David Banda attracted a huge wave of negative publicity, allegedly putting further strain on the relationship. The couple have one other son, Rocco, and Lourdes, Madonna’s daughter from a relationship with her fitness instructor Carlos Leon.

Madge’s meeting with Nicholas Mostyn took place at his London office just over ten days ago.

[From Holy Moly]

Ritchie has just started to revive his long-comatose career after Madonna helped derail it with their obnoxious collaboration Swept Away in 2002. His 2005 film Revolver was critically panned and flopped at the box office, but he’s working again and has Rock N Rolla coming out later this year. He also is set to direct Sherlock Holmes for Warner Brothers, and is working on the script as well.

Madonna has tried her hand at directing, since she doesn’t have enough other stuff going on. She directed Filth and Wisdom, a semi-autobiographical piece about “three flatmates living desperate lives in London,” according to IMDB, and it’s out in the US also later this year. It’s seems like it would be a blow to Guy’s ego that his wife, who is already one of the most successful women on the planet, has started to muscle in on his territory. He may not be too bothered by it, though. In an interview in December of last year Guy demonstrated the laid back attitude that surely helps him endure his marriage. When asked if he was worried if Madonna’s career overshadowed his own he said “Don’t know what you mean! She’s got her career and I’ve got mine. What can you do? She’s Madonna.”

As for the health of their marriage, Madonna has admitted that she’s almost split with Ritchie in the past. In October, 2005 she said:

“My husband did not turn out to be everything I imagined him to be. I just wanted to end everything. It’s not easy having a good marriage but I don’t want it easy. I thank God every day that I married a man who made me think. That’s my definition of true love.” She added: “Your soulmate is the person that pushes all your buttons. Pisses you off on a regular basis and makes you face your s***.”

[From Starpulse]

Madonna also told OK! Magazine earlier this year that she and Guy sleep with their Blackberries under their pillows.

Holy Moly speculates that Madonna’s divorce will be kept as quiet as possible, but I bet it will be a circus. The press and public will be clamoring for details and there’s little chance they can keep this under wraps.

Madonna and Guy are shown looking miserable at the premiere of Madonna’s documentary I Am Because We Are in Cannes on 5/21/08, thanks to WENN.