Meet Madonna, the real prima donna

British TV channels recently got a taste of Madonna's celebrity status, as the pop diva threw tantrums on almost everything – even insisting that the air-conditioning be turned off since "it could affect her vocal chords".

Madonna, who came to the GMTV studio for an interview during her recent trip to London, objected to anything that was not in line with her liking.

"We knew Madonna was tough, but had no idea she was this exacting. We had had specifications on lighting and camera angles before she arrived," the Mirror quoted a TV source as saying.

The source said, "But she took one look at the chair and complained it was the wrong colour.

The hitmaker then fussed over the red lighting.

The insider revealed, "Everyone was stuck in this room sweating under the TV lights, while we waited for her to give the thumbs up.

"We had been warned not to turn on the airconditioner because it could affect her vocal cords. It was ridiculous."

And more "brusque" behaviour from the star followed.

The source added, "She had a string of interviews lined up and seemed to get more fractious as the day wore on.

"The poor woman from Japan stood no chance and was seen looking forlorn in the foyer. She said Madge had barely answered any of her questions and had been really sharp with her."

However, Madonna's spokeswoman ignored all the reports of off-hand behaviour by the star.

She said, "Madonna was an ultimate professional throughout her day of interviews. And her favourite one was GMTV."