I’m a skincare expert – how Madonna’s face has changed in the battle against wrinkles and what she might have had done
AFTER her appearance at Sunday night’s Grammy awards, fans of Madonna were left asking: Who’s That Girl?
The 64-year-old Queen Of Pop looked unrecognisable, with a plumped-up face and taut skin.
So has she gone under the knife and, if so, what has she had done?
Alice Henshaw, owner of and skincare brand , says the new look suggests she may have had recent surgery.
Here, we look back at Madge’s transforming face, from the 1980s until now – and Alice gives her thoughts on what nip-tuck help she might have had.
1980s
'Bee-stung' fuller lips
THE fresh-faced brunette from Michigan dyed her hair blonde and burst on to the pop scene in 1983, aged 25.
Alice says: “She looks pretty natural at this point as you’d expect in her 20s. By 1987 there is potentially a bit of Botox and possibly cheek filler, although she does have quite naturally high cheekbones.”
By the time of raunchy 1990 hit Justify My Love, Madonna’s lips looked noticeably fuller, prompting rumours of collagen injections for a “bee-stung” look.
“By 1990 you can tell that she’s had Botox because if you look at the angle of the brow, it’s lifted quite a bit,” says Alice.
“Her cheekbones are more prominent, suggesting lip filler and her lips have had filler, giving her the fuller mouth.”
Hurtling towards her 50th birthday in 2008, Madge insisted she had no problem with ageing.
But that same year she was spotted with bruises around the eyes, fuelling speculation of lower lid surgery.
There were also claims she’d had a revolutionary ribbon lift, which involves an absorbable ribbon being inserted in the neck to tighten loose skin.
1990s
2000s
2010s
2020s
'Gaunt of full cheeks'
PUBLIC appearances have become more rare since the singer turned 60, but recent posts on her Instagram account show an unlined face and impossibly young looks, suggesting they are heavily filtered.
Madonna appears to have had surgery in 2020 and again in 2023.
Alice says: “The swollen neck, in 2020, would suggest fat-transfer neck surgery, as filler alone would not cause this much swelling.
“Previous suspected facelifts left her looking gaunt but the 2020 pictures and the most recent ones indicate a possible neck lift and fat transfer to the face, resulting in the fuller cheeks.
“The very taut skin, at Sunday’s Grammys, suggests she is post-surgery. You can see the angle of the lateral brow is very lifted. No signs of jowls or marionette lines and very little nasolabial lines.”
'Brow lift and boxtox'
SUPERFIT Madonna is a huge fan of yoga and punishing workouts that “shock” the body.
And she has put her youthful looks down to her famously strict macrobiotic diet, which consists of grains, nuts, beans and vegetables.
In 2019 she once again hit back at rumours of surgery, after fans speculated she’d had a butt lift, posting the comeback:
“Desperately seeking no one’s approval…and entitled to free agency over my body like everyone else!”
But Alice believes the face may have had more work by then.
She says: “In the early 2010s, the tighter skin suggests a mini facelift and the high eyebrows suggest a brow lift.
“The smooth forehead and full lips and cheeks suggest Botox plus fillers.
“As you get towards the end of the decade, like in the 2019 picture, there is evidence of a full face lift.”