Mel B reveals she was left with £800 after bitter split from Stephen Belafonte

Former Spice Girl Mel B has revealed she had less than £800 in the bank after she left her ex-husband Stephen Belafonte.

The 43-year-old singer, whose full name is Melaine Brown, claims her £80million fortune was controlled by Belafonte during their 10-year marriage. 

In a new autobiography, Brown alleges her former husband seized control of her finances and made her feel "ugly and worthless". 

The pop star also described American actor Eddie Murphy – the father of her 11-year-old daughter Angel – as the love of her life, and referred to him as a "genuinely decent man".

Extracts of the book published in The Sun refer to her acrimonious split from her second husband, movie producer Belafonte, whom she married in 2007.

She said: "In the past 20-something years of my life, I have made more than £80 million.

"When I met my second husband (Stephen), I had a house and a loft apartment in LA and a good career. When I left him I walked away with $936 (£729) in a bank."

Mel B finalised her divorce from Belafonte in August, bringing their bitter split to an end.

The mother-of-three alleged during the divorce proceedings that he was abusive to her and her children, while he accused her of turning his stepdaughter Angel against him.

In an interview with the newspaper, she revealed she felt trapped in their relationship. She said: “He made me feel ugly. Like a waste of space. Like I was a terrible mother, a whore. Like I was lucky to be married to him because no one else would put up with trash like me.  

"I felt emotionally battered, estranged from my family. I felt detested by the very man who promised to love and protect me . . . a man who had a library of sex tapes that could ruin my career and destroy my family.”

Her autobiography, entitled Brutally Honest, explores her year-long relationship with Murphy, 57, which ended when she was pregnant.

Murphy told reporters he wanted a DNA test to prove Brown's child was his which "broke her heart". Brown said she felt humiliated and the pair went their separate ways while she was months away from giving birth to their child.  

Now, more than a decade on, Brown revealed relations between her and Murphy were positive. She said their 11-year-old daughter Angel spends weekends with her father at his mansion in Los Angeles. 

She told The Sun: "I'd been madly in love with Eddie and I lost him. Eddie was and still is the love of my life. He's a genuinely decent man."