Madge sues for leaked wedding pics

By Carla Bevan on Tuesday 9 December 2008

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Madonna is claiming £5million in damages after photographs of her wedding were published in a Sunday newspaper.

Despite keeping nearly every detail of her 2000 nuptials to Guy Ritchie private at the time, a few months back – in the wake of the couple's separation – the Mail on Sunday splashed 11 photographs of the event over its front cover and in a double-page feature inside.

Madonna isn't amused.

In the High Court yesterday, the singer's barrister, Matthew Nicklin, said: 'She was ambushed, for the simple reason that if the Mail on Sunday had told her what they intended to do, the claimant would have sought and obtained an injunction.'

So, how on earth did the paper get the pictures, which were taken by Jean-Baptiste Mondino and presented as a personal gift to the married couple and no one else?

The answer lies with an unscrupulous designer who, while working in one of Madonna's homes, managed to take photographs of the originals and then sold them, via a third party (known to be a woman called Bonnie Robinson), to the Mail for just £5,000.

'The photographs, assembled by the claimant in an album, were a personal record of the event and kept by the claimant at her home,' Nicklin told the court.

'Whilst the claimant was having interior work done on her home in Beverly Hills, one of the interior designers, Robert Joseph Wilber, surreptitiously gained access to the photograph album and copied at least 26 photographs.

'Readers were told nothing about the grubby way the photographs had essentially been stolen from the claimant's home and purchased by the Mail on Sunday from Ms Robinson.'

The newspaper has admitted breach of privacy and copyright and Mr Justice Eady ruled in favour of Madonna on the issue of liability.

Damages, which Madonna has already said she will donate to her Raising Malawi charity, will be decided upon next year.

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Tuesday 9 December 2008

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I totally support Madonna in her fight against immorality, i.e. part of the British arrogant press who thinks to be above the law. Go Girl, we are with you!
Comment by alex on December 09 17:54