Julia has nine month itch

Nine months after saying ' I do', Julia Roberts is talking divorce.

The actress known for a string of failed relationships is said to have tired of husband Danny Moder and called in the lawyers.

Friends of the couple claim tension between them has reached breaking point because they have been unable to have a baby.

The conflict boiled over last month when Moder, 34, refused to accompany Miss Roberts to the Oscars ceremony, according to U.S. magazine the National Enquirer.

The actress was so incensed she is said to have had a massive tantrum moments before going on stage to present the Best Cinematography award.

'Julia and Danny are tired of non- stop bickering,' a friend told the magazine.

'They always said that if they couldn't make a go of marriage, they wanted to part as friends.

'But there's so much hostility between them that right now any hope of remaining friends is a long shot.

'The marriage is collapsing and they're talking about divorce.

'Danny says they are through. He told a family member that he and Julia weren't getting along at all. Danny attributed

much of their troubles to the stress of trying for a baby.

'He wants out, he just wishes this marriage had never happened.

'And Julia is embarrassed that she's failed at love again.

'They're trying to work out terms for a divorce.'

The couple met on the set of The Mexican in 2000, which starred Miss Roberts and Brad Pitt. The 35-year- old Oscarwinner, whose films include Pretty Woman, Runaway Bride and Erin Brockovich, had just broken up with actor Benjamin Bratt.

Moder, a cameraman, left his wife of five years, makeup artist Vera Steinberg, to be with Miss Roberts.

Miss Steinberg was devastated by her husband's betrayal and tried to delay their divorce.

It has since emerged that she had a miscarriage shortly before Moder left her. Miss Roberts is said to be upset that Moder told her nothing of this.

She got off to a bad start with her husband's family, wearing a t- shirt bearing the slogan 'A Low Vera' as he tried to negotiate a quick divorce so Miss Roberts could be a bride.

'Danny's family hasn't hidden the fact that they dislike his new wife intensely,' the friend said.

'Julia blames Danny's family now for a lot of the problems in their marriage. And the Moders, in turn, blame Julia for alienating Danny from them.'

Miss Roberts's love life reads like a Hollywood Who's Who.

Previous romances include Matthew Perry, Liam Neeson, Daniel Day-Lewis and Richard Gere. She also dallied with the late John Kennedy Jr.

She famously left Kiefer Sunderland on the eve of their wedding in 1991, running off with his friend, fellow actor Jason Patric.

Her first marriage to country singer Lyle Lovett in 1993 ended after just 21 months.

She married Moder in a lowkey ceremony in July last year at her New Mexico ranch.

The couple tried to damp down speculation about their wedding by disguising it as a garden party.

The invitation asked guests to: 'Come celebrate our Independence Day on the green grass under the stars with the dogs and the horses.'

t.bonnici@dailymail.co.uk