Madonna burst into tears during a night out in London yesterday (07.04.09).

The singer was enjoying dinner at Cecconi's Restaurant in Mayfair with designer Stella McCartney when she reached into her handbag and pulled out a picture of Mercy James, the four-year-old Malawian orphan she is trying to adopt.

But after a few minutes of excited conversation, the 50-year-old star started sobbing while Stella, 37, tried to comfort her.

A fellow diner said: "Madonna was proudly showing a photo of Mercy to Stella.

"But it was clearly too much and the moment overcame her. Stella told her to be strong and gave her a hug as Madonna cried."

Stella had invited Madonna to dinner in a bid to cheer her up but the pair left soon after the emotional outburst, cutting their meal short.

Madonna and her children Lourdes, 12, Rocco, eight, and David, three, flew from Malawi to Britain on Sunday (05.04.09), after a judge rejected the star's bid to adopt Mercy.

The singer was expecting to be granted custody immediately but Judge Esme Chombo rejected the case because Madonna has not lived in Malawi for 18 months or more.

A friend said: "The last week has been one of the hardest in her life. She's really relying on her friends to help her through."

But her sadness at the adoption refusal hasn't dampened Madonna's generosity - the star has donated $500,000 to victims of the Italian earthquake.

The '4 Minutes' singer reportedly requested the money be used in her father Silvio Ciccone's home region of Abruzzo.

More than 200 people have died and thousands more left homeless by the 6.3 magnitude quake which hit the European country on Monday