No career, no kids, no sympathy

The decline of Britney Spears from a pop megastar to tabloid punchline continued last night when a judge awarded custody of the singer’s two children to her former husband, the failed rapper Kevin Federline.

The decision by Judge Scott Gordon was made after a hearing two weeks ago, during which he noted allegations that Ms Spears was engaging in “habitual, frequent and continuous use of controlled substances and alcohol”. He also ordered her to undergo random drug tests.

Her loss of custody follows allegations by one of her former bodyguards that she used drugs in front of her children and walked around naked in front of domestic staff. Ms Spears, 25, is worth an estimated $100 million (£50 million) and she owns homes in Malibu and Orlando and a forest in Louisiana.

Her indefinite loss of custody of Sean Preston, 2, and Jayden James, 1, begins at noon tomorrow. It is the latest in a series of incidents in a breakdown that has been viewed in public. Over recent months Ms Spears has shaved her head in apparent defiance at her mother; been booked into a rehabilitation clinic; attacked a photographer’s car with an umbrella; and been charged for hit-and-run and driving without a licence, for which she could face a year in jail.

The singer — who achieved global stardom at the age of 17 thanks to the video for Baby, One More Time, in which she appeared as a schoolgirl — also appeared to forget both the words and dance moves to her “comeback” song, Gimme More, during a confused performance last month at the MTV Video Music Awards. The host of the show, Sarah Silverman, ridiculed her live on air. “Wasn’t that incredible?” she said. “Britney Spears, everyone. Wow. She is amazing. She is 25 years old and she has already accomplished everything she’s going to accomplish in her life. It’s mind-blowing.”

The ridicule of the MTV performance continued on America’s talk shows when a cross-dressing video blogger, Chris Crocker, made an emotional plea on YouTube, the video-sharing website, on her behalf, imploring the public to “leave Britney alone”. The clip has been viewed 9 million times and attracted 130,000 comments. Ms Spears was also recently dropped by her management company, The Firm. “Current circumstances have prevented us from properly doing our job,” the company said. “We wish Britney the best.” Ms Spears has also changed her legal team.

The decision to grant custody of Ms Spears’ children to Mr Federline, 29, is likely to be controversial. Mr Federline, a former back-up dancer for Michael Jackson and the female singer Pink, was criticised widely when he left his previous girlfriend, with whom he had two children, to marry Ms Spears. He received a text message from Ms Spears confirming their divorce while he was in the middle of a televised interview.

Mr Federline’s album sold 6,500 copies in its first week and only 1,200 copies in the second. It is thought that his case for custody was helped by testimony from a former bodyguard for Ms Spears, Tony Barretto, who claims that he was dismissed after failing to pick up the singer’s hat when told. Through a lawyer, Ms Spears said that he was a disgruntled former employee.

The judge in the custody case has ordered Ms Spears to see a therapist at least once a week and has required her to hire a “parenting coach” as well as to sign up, with her former husband, to a Los Angeles programme entitled Parenting Without Conflict.

Ms Spears’ first album in four years is set for release next month.

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