It is finally happening: the intensely speculated breakdown of Madonna and Guy Ritchie’s eight-year marriage becomes official on Friday, in London’s High Court.

Pop superstar Madonna and British director Guy Ritchie put an end to endless speculation on the state of their marriage last month when they announced they were divorcing. Only to have another kind of speculation ensue: how would they share their finances and what custody agreement would they reach?

These questions will soon be answered, as the two estranged spouses are to have their divorce commence on Friday at the High Court’s Family Division in London, according to the BBC. According to reports, the couple have reached a settlement over finances and sharing custody of their children and the public is bound to learn such details sooner or later.

As of now, Barbara Charone, Madonna’s London-based publicist, has said there would be no comments on the situation.

The high profile couple is registered for Friday’s hearing under the names Ciccone M and Ritchie GS. Neither party is required to attend; they are unlikely to, due to their celebrity. If the parties establish an agreement and there are no disputes, a decree nisi becomes a decree absolute within weeks, legally ending the marriage, per the BBC.

The music icon and her husband have a joint fortune estimated to be worth around $525 million. They are also parents to three children. Lourdes is Madonna’s 12-year-old daughter from a previous relationship with fitness trainer Carlos Leone. Rocco, 8, is the couple’s sole biological child, born in 2000, just a few months before they were married. David Banda, 2, has lived with Madonna and Ritchie since 2006; the Malawi toddler’s adoption was finalized earlier this year.

According to some media reports, Rocco and David will spend time both in the US and the UK, as Madonna is said to be returning to her native country while Ritchie will remain in his. Lourdes is said to continue living with her mother.

Madonna, 50, is currently in the midst of the North American leg of her Sticky and Sweet tour. During her two-decade career she has sold more than 200 million records, in one sense fulfilling the wish she cheekily expressed on MTV at the beginning of her career – that she wanted to rule the world.

Ritchie, 40, is presently filming “Sherlock Holms” in the UK for Warner Bros. It stars Robert Downey Jr. as the title character, Jude Law as Dr. Watson and Rachel McAdams as femme fatale Irene Adler. It is slated for an October 2009 release.

The couple were married at Skibo Castle in Scotland in December 2000.