Madonna injured in horse fall, blames paparazzi

Madonna was taken to hospital with minor injuries after a horseback riding accident in New York. Photo / AP

UPDATED:

Pop queen

Madonna

was thrown off a horse and injured after the beast was startled by photographers in New York on Saturday.

The singer's longtime rep,

Liz Rosenberg

, said the entertainer "suffered minor injuries and bruises" while horse riding in New York's Hamptons at the home of celebrity photographer

Steven Klein

.

Although Madonna's injuries were not believed to be serious, she was taken to hospital as a precaution.

Jumped out of the bushes...

Rosenberg says the 50-year-old pop diva, decked out in full riding gear, including a helmet, was thrown from her horse after it had become startled by snappers who jumped out of some bushes.

According to the

New York Post

, Madge was performing jumps in front of a group of around ten people - including boy toy

Jesus Luz

- when she took a tumble at 4:30pm. Onlookers quickly rushed to her aid and "gingerly carried her on a backboard to a waiting ambulance, which raced to Southampton Hospital."

"Madonna who was thrown off a horse earlier today has just been released from Southampton Hospital with minor injuries and bruises," Rosenberg said in a statement.

"The accident occurred when the horse Madonna was riding was startled by paparazzi who jumped out of the bushes to photograph the singer who was visiting friends on Eastern Long Island over the weekend. Madonna will be having further tests and continues to remain under observation by doctors."

The

Post

says that Madge left the hospital on her own later in the day and hopped into the back of a waiting blacked-out SUV.

Neigh. Get off your horse...

This is the keen equestrian's second horse-riding accident in four years. In 2005, on her 47th birthday, Madge broke several bones after falling from a horse - a gift from her hubby Guy - while riding at her estate at Wiltshire, south-west England, London - she cracked three ribs and broke her collarbone and hand.

She later described that accident as "the most painful event of my life".

Seven months later, bullet-proof Madge was photographed by Klein for a spread in

W

magazine, frolicking alongside six stallions, riding crop in hand.

A bit like this

...

How prophetic.

Like a hurtin'

Her 2005 accident was also widely believed to be the catalyst that brought on the downfall of her marriage to director

Guy Ritchie

- Madonna reportedly felt isolated and hurt after her man's cool reaction to her tumble. The

couple divorced

in November.

Maybe it's time to get off the saddle, Madge. But we doubt she will, she's a stubborn old mare. Sorry.

UPDATE:

The photographer who captured snaps of Madonna in New York on the day she fell off her horse is disputing the singer's take on events.

Freelance snapper

Thomas Hinton

tells Newsday.com that the only photog present when Madge took a fall was

Steven Klein

.

"As far as I'm concerned, the only photographer present when the accident happened was Steven Klein," Hinton said.

The snapper says he was tipped off that Madge would be arriving in the Hamptons by helicopter and took some photos of her from a public road.

"It was so obstructed by bushes that I left," he said.

He says he wasn't there when she fell, but later returned after being tipped off to take some more shots of her being carried away on a backboard.

"If a photographer startled a horse, I'm thinking we would have seen the pictures by now," he said. "That would be such an egregious thing to do, to trespass and startle a horse. The police would have been looking for a photographer."

Rosenberg released a statement saying that her client's horse "was startled by papparazzi who jumped out of the bushes to photograph the singer."

Click here to view exclusive pics of Madonna's horse fall, courtesy of the New York Post.

Boyle mania

We just can’t get enough of

Britain's Got Talent

superstar

Susan Boyle

and her dulcet tones. In short, she's incredible. There's something disarmingly refreshing about her story - it's a classic tale of the underdog triumphing over adversity. She's also authentic - something all too alien in an increasingly manufactured music landscape.

Her

Talent audition video 

continues to have a life of its own in the clickstream (the YouTube clip’s had over 20million views so far). But there's more…

A new clip has surfaced of the Scot singing a heart-rending version of

Cry Me A River

. Boyle reportedly recorded her take on the classic ten years ago for a charity CD.

Wow. Got a dream? Live it.

He's back...

David Beckham

stars in this new ad for Motorola. He’s pimping a new phone or something, but seriously, who cares what he's got for sale…all eyes are undoubtedly on his oiled-up abs...

Ladies and gentlemen, you're welcome.

Wring his neck

Barely two weeks after reality TV star

Jade Goody

was laid to rest, mud has been slung on her name. Roll up veteran interviewer

Michael Parkinson

, who launched a surprise attack on the Goody fanfare recently.

"Her death is as sad as the death of any young person, but it's not the passing of a martyr or a saint or, God help us, Princess Di. When we clear the media smokescreen from around her death, what we’re left with is a woman who came to represent all that’s paltry and wretched about Britain today," said Parky.

"She was brought up on a sink estate, as a child came to know both drugs and crime, was barely educated, ignorant and puerile," he added.

Now Goody’s grandmother

Sylvia Caddock

has responded to Parky's snarky comments, saying she'd like to wring his neck.

"I'd love to give him a piece of my mind," she said. "I'd love to wring his neck."

Just looking

The woman who was

arrested last week

for peeping through

Britney Spears

' windows, armed with a video camera no less, now says the whole thing was a joke.

"The whole thing — it was all a joke in the beginning, everybody knew about it,"

Tozier-Robbins

, tells People.com.

"It was supposed to be like a

Paparazzi 101

documentary type deal."

The intrepid trespasser, decked out in a camouflage outfit, says her urge to peep through Brit Brit's curtains was a spontaneous thing.

"What originally was supposed to happen was, I was going to tape whatever I could get. I would be like, far away doing a stakeout," she said.

"It didn’t work out as planned, so when I was already halfway there in the mountains [around Britney’s home], it was already Wednesday night/Thursday morning ... I already knew Britney herself wouldn’t be there, but it’s like, I came that far, I might as well go see the house, at least get the house on tape, because I know people would be interested in seeing stuff like that."

If you say so, love.

"It's a once in a lifetime opportunity, you understand? She’s coming through on the tour, on the stop, it's like take your chance. Take the opportunity, do it," she guffawed.

Highlarious. What's even funnier is that the light-footed snoop is comfortable with being labeled a stalker.

"Yeah, sure. That would be a fair term to use. Tracking, stalking, whatever, for a couple weeks long.

"It wasn’t really stalking her, it was more plotting out how to get to her house."

Genius. There's one born every minute.

BBB

Fast gossip

Drew Barrymore

needs to lay off the coffee:

CR

Mickey Rourke

brought to tears by

Kim Basinger

letter:

SP

Elle MacPherson

, fashion witch:

CS

Guess whose sexy belly this is...

PB

Pink

and

Carey Hart

to renew vows:

GB

Jennifer Aniston

turns the other cheek:

EW

Oprah

posts her first Twitter message:

JJ

Mel Gibson

gives divorce judge the boot:

TMZ

Drew Barrymore

denies she's back with

Justin Long

:

CB

Family begs

Lindsay Lohan

to return to rehab:

HB

Marianne Faithfull

in airport bust-up:

M

*nzherald.co.nz is not responsible for the content of external websites

We need your vote!

The

2009 Web Awards

are upon us. Last year we were privileged to be a

finalist in the Best Blog category

. We're asking for your help again.

Please vote for your favourite blogger again in the

Best Blog category

.

Thank you!

BBB

*New - follow Blogger Bites Back on Twitter

Pictured: Madonna. Photo / AP