Madonna (39 page)

At a time when the world seemed to have had enough of her, Madonna chose 1993 to embark on another world tour – this time it was The Girlie Show.

Madonna with San Antonio Spurs basketball player Dennis Rodman, with whom she had an affair in 1994. She was deeply hurt when he published faxes she had sent him in his autobiography.

Madonna and Carlos Leon at the premiere of
Evita.
Madonna had become pregnant by Leon during the shooting of the film and gave birth to a daughter, Lourdes, in October 1996. They met when she was jogging in New York’s Central Park and she complimented him on his style of sunglasses.

Lourdes Maria Ciccone Leon. The birth of her daughter gave Madonna the chance to give and receive the unconditional love she had been searching for all her life.

When most people meet Madonna for the first time they comment on her stature – she is only 5 foot 4 inches tall – and her penetrating hazel eyes. Here she is in Los Angeles, promoting her film
Evita,
in December 1996, just two months after the birth of Lourdes. The cleaned-up image helped win back old fans and gain new ones, as well as bringing her respectability as a singer.

Madonna and long-time friend Ingrid Casares. Unpopular with many of Madonna’s entourage, she has been dubbed ‘the Shadow.’

Madonna with her younger brother Christopher, to whom she is very close. He has helped with the interior design of her homes, advised on her art collections and assisted in organizing her spectacular stage shows.

The singer Sting has been instrumental in guiding Madonna during the last few years. He introduced her to yoga, which she still practices, and it was at a dinner party at his home that she first met an up-and-coming young film director, Guy Ritchie.

Married bliss: Madonna holds the hand of her daughter by Carlos Leon, Lourdes, as she walks
en famille
in London in the summer of 2001. Her husband, Guy Ritchie, cradles their son Rocco, at that time not yet a year old.

In recent years, Madonna has become close to Stella McCartney
(below),
who designed the wedding dress for her marriage to Guy Ritchie; Gwyneth Paltrow
(left),
also a close friend, was her bridesmaid.

Who am I now? The Material Girl starts a craze for wearing slogan tee-shirts, including those printed with ‘Mrs Ritchie,’ the name of her husband’s latest film, and the names of her children.