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From shiner to shimmer: Madonna has skin like her daughter as she loses mystery bruise
Last updated at 06:57am on 11.02.08It is only a couple of weeks since she was hiding bruised cheeks behind giant sunglasses.
But when Madonna emerged for her latest public appearance, she was shimmering.
Observers said she looked almost as freshfaced as her 11-year-old daughter, Lourdes, who accompanied her to a charity gala in New York.
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Wonderful: Madonna at the gala. Admirers likened her complexion to her 11-year-old daughter
Her flawless complexion heightened speculation that the bruising she was so shy about last month may have been the result of cosmetic surgery.
If it was, admirers at the gala were whispering that there could barely be a better advertisement for the procedure.
It was certainly a spectacular contrast to the gaunt figure who mooched around a TV film set in London last May.
It would suggest that growing old gracefully – she turns 50 in August – is not on her agenda.
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Tired and wounded: Madonna's different looks in different months
In a gold jersey Gucci dress, she outshone most of the glamorous guests as she hosted the New York event in aid of HIV and Aids orphans in Malawi.
Gwyneth Paltrow wore a thigh-skimming pink Gucci dress accessoried with an enormous pink bow, while Jennifer Lopez, who is just days away from giving birth to twins, showed off her bump in a chocolate brown halterneck gown.
The fundraiser, held in the grounds of the UN headquarters, raised £2.5million for the Raising Malawi charity but not without controversy.
The UN distanced itself after officials discovered the founder of the African charity, Michael Berg, was also co-founder of the Kabbalah centre where Madonna worships.
The singer herself surprised some of her A-list guests, including Tom Cruise, Demi Moore and Drew Barrymore, by launching into a diatribe against her critics.
She looked close to tears as she said: "I have earned a reputation for many things – pushing the envelope, for being a provocateur, for never taking no for an answer, for endlessly reinventing myself, for being a cult member and a kidnapper."
The latter was a reference to criticism she attracted when she adopted Malawian toddler David Banda.
The night before, however, the main topic of conversations was how Lourdes is every inch her mother's daughter.
The pop star arrived with her mirror-image companion in tow as she prepared to play host to a celebrity-studded event on the lawns of the United Nations to aid Malawi orphans, UNICEF and to inaugurate a new Gucci store.
Double take: With her daughter Lourdes in tow, Madonna arrived to host a party to raise funds for her charity in New York last night
Family ties: look alike Lourdes, 11, in New York last night; Madonna at the age of seven
Of course, the cause is very personal for Madonna - she and her husband, director Guy Ritchie, are in the process of adopting 13-month-old Malawian David Banda.
Guests were rumoured to have paid £1000 a ticket for the party, which attracted the likes of Tom Cruise and Katie and Demi Moore and husband Ashton Kutcher.
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So proud: The Queen of Pop held hands with daughter Lourdes, whose father is Madonna's ex Carlos Leon
Heavily pregnant Jennifer Lopez arrived with her husband Marc Antony, while Brooke Shields, Drew Barrymore, Dita Von Teese, Nelly Furtado and Rihanna added high-voltage glamour to the evening.
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Power couples: Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher and Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes
It was one of seven lots on auction at Raising Malawi and Unicef, one of the biggest charity events in New York which took organiser Gucci a year to plan.
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Hollywood sweethearts: Gwyneth Paltrow and Drew Barrymore
Feeling hip: Burlesque star Dita von Teese; singer Alicia Keys
"I want you to feel as inspired as I do right now."
Fighting back tears, she talked about the courage of Malawi's people.
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Off duty parents: Pregnant star Gwen Stefani arrived with her husband Gavin Rossdale, while new mother Salma Hayek walked the red carpet solo
Glamour: Supermodel Heidi Klum and the star of the new series Lipstick Jungle, Brooke Shields
Later, a mystery Japanese businesswoman bought the Madonna tickets. Businessman Arpad Busson bid £30,000 for Gucci fashion show tickets and the chance to have a bag named after him.
Lourdes narrowly missed out on tickets to American Idol and first-edition Harry Potter books, which eventually went for £47,000.
Salma Hayek outbid American Vogue editor Anna Wintour to pay £175,000 for a private hour playing football with David Beckham.
Reader views (5)
Madge... your daughter is beautiful. I'm sure you cherish her.
- Quasiquirky, Texas
Wow - Madonna's shoes look really uncomfortable. Those shoes look like they're 3 sizes too small. How does she walk?
- Lex, Ipswitch UK
Mirror-image? Did the mirror stop at her chin?...because those bottom three inches of her face are clearly from another gene group.
- Fonda Peters, Tamper, Florida
Eek.... Madonna really needs to check the mirror. Those armpit sweat stains are just gross.
- Idontwannahear, los angeles, ca, usa
Madge's shoes look a little on the tight side....
- Suzanne, surrey
