Oscar's curse falls on Reese Witherspoon

But winning the Best Female Oscar, it seems, puts a curse on your marriage.

Reese Witherspoon became the sixth winner of the award in the past decade to split from her partner.

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• Gallery: Other Oscar winners who've gone on to split

Her announcement that she was separating from actor Ryan Phillippe, her husband of seven years, follows rumours that he was unable to cope with his wife's runaway success.

Miss Witherspoon, 30, recently negotiated an £18million fee for her next movie, making her the highest-paid actress of all time.

Her 32-year-old husband, meanwhile, picked up just £200,000 for his role in the critically-acclaimed film Crash.

Rumours that their marriage was on the rocks surfaced shortly after she picked up this year's Oscar for her role as Johnny Cash's wife June Carter in Walk the Line.

In her acceptance speech she paid tribute to "my wonderful husband." But at an aftershow party a furious Phillippe was said to have barked "my wife is my pass" before barging past a security guard.

The marriage break-up follows a familiar pattern.

Two-time Oscar winner Hilary Swank famously forgot to mention husband Chad Lowe in 2000.

The couple split in January of this year.

Halle Berry, who won in 2002, called husband Eric Benet: "The joy of my life" before discovering he had had a string of affairs. 2001 winner Julia Roberts soon split with Benjamin Bratt to marry cameraman Daniel Moder. Gwyneth Paltrow, who won in 1999, wept as she thanked her now ex-boyfriend Ben Affleck.

Helen Hunt called Hank Azaria "my beloved" in 1998. They split in 2000.

Only Charlize Theron (2004) and Frances McDormand (1997) have emerged unscathed.

So too, strictly speaking, has Nicole Kidman, who won in 2003. She, however, has had her own well-documented marriage troubles.