London:
Britain's former 'It' couple popstar Cheryl Cole and footballer Ashley Cole were granted a quickie divorce in a hearing which lasted less than 60 seconds.
Their turbulent four-year marriage finally ended when a judge today accepted that the relationship had broken down because of the Chelsea footballer's "unreasonable behaviour", according to reports..
The Three Words hit-maker had separated from the footballer in February after his multiple infidelities were made public by British tabloids.
In High Court papers, Cheryl claimed that Ashley was still acting unreasonably, leading to suggestions that the pair are still battling over how to split their assets worth
many millions.
District Judge Chris Simmonds granted the 27-year-old Girls Aloud singer, a 'decree nisi'. The pair now face a six-month 'cooling off' period before a decree absolute is granted, which will end their marriage for good.
The pair's divorce petition, which was listed under their initials in a bid to try and avoid publicity, appeared first in a list of 29 undefended petitions.
Neither Cheryl or Ashley, 29, were present at the High Court in central London this morning.
Cheryl is currently in Los Angeles while Ashley is preparing for an upcoming match with Bulgaria.
They met in 2004 when they both had homes in the same London apartment block.
They were engaged in 2005 after he proposed in Dubai and they tied the knot the next year, with an OK! magazine deal.
In early 2008 claims were made that Ashley had been unfaithful to his wife. Their troubled marriage was the subject of much media attention and the popstar was pictured on a number of occasions without her wedding ring.
The ring was off again in February this year when Cheryl appeared at the Brit Awards performing her chart-topping single Fight For This Love, in an apparent sign that the marriage was doomed.
This time it was as a result of stories detailing how pictures of an undressed Ashley Cole were texted to a glamour model.
Days later another woman came forward to say she too had received saucy shots from the same phone months earlier. And to compound the misery, two other women came forward claiming she had slept with the player last year while he was in the US.
Their turbulent four-year marriage finally ended when a judge today accepted that the relationship had broken down because of the Chelsea footballer's "unreasonable behaviour", according to reports..
The Three Words hit-maker had separated from the footballer in February after his multiple infidelities were made public by British tabloids.
In High Court papers, Cheryl claimed that Ashley was still acting unreasonably, leading to suggestions that the pair are still battling over how to split their assets worth
many millions.
District Judge Chris Simmonds granted the 27-year-old Girls Aloud singer, a 'decree nisi'. The pair now face a six-month 'cooling off' period before a decree absolute is granted, which will end their marriage for good.
The pair's divorce petition, which was listed under their initials in a bid to try and avoid publicity, appeared first in a list of 29 undefended petitions.
Neither Cheryl or Ashley, 29, were present at the High Court in central London this morning.
Cheryl is currently in Los Angeles while Ashley is preparing for an upcoming match with Bulgaria.
They met in 2004 when they both had homes in the same London apartment block.
They were engaged in 2005 after he proposed in Dubai and they tied the knot the next year, with an OK! magazine deal.
In early 2008 claims were made that Ashley had been unfaithful to his wife. Their troubled marriage was the subject of much media attention and the popstar was pictured on a number of occasions without her wedding ring.
The ring was off again in February this year when Cheryl appeared at the Brit Awards performing her chart-topping single Fight For This Love, in an apparent sign that the marriage was doomed.
This time it was as a result of stories detailing how pictures of an undressed Ashley Cole were texted to a glamour model.
Days later another woman came forward to say she too had received saucy shots from the same phone months earlier. And to compound the misery, two other women came forward claiming she had slept with the player last year while he was in the US.
