A general view shows one of the two homes of U.S. pop star Madonna and her husband, British film director Guy Ritchie, near the village of Tollard Royal, in Wiltshire, southern England in this August 17, 2005 file photo. The one-year-old Malawian boy Madonna is seeking to adopt arrived in Britain on Tuesday, witnesses said.. Photo Credit: REUTERS/Mike Finn-KelceyLONDON (Reuters) - The one-year-old Malawian boy Madonna is seeking to adopt arrived in Britain on Tuesday, witnesses said.
David Banda flew via Johannesburg from Malawi overnight with one of the U.S. pop star's bodyguards and her personal assistant and arrived at London's Heathrow airport at around 0530 GMT.
Malawian authorities earlier waived local rules to grant Madonna and her film director husband, Guy Ritchie, an interim adoption, prompting charges from human rights groups that the star used her celebrity status to bypass normal adoption rules.
Banda, who is leaving behind his father Yohane, will swap his home in a dilapidated orphanage near the Zambian border for a life of luxury in London with one of the world's most famous couples and their two children. The boy's mother died after she gave birth to him, according to media reports.