Singer and Hollywood actress Britney Spears has sacked the hired help who used to clean the pool at her Malibu, California mansion – because he became too friendly with her husband, according to US reports.

John Lahane, the son of fitness guru Jack Lahane, claims chatting to Kevin Federline got him fired – because Spears feared he was only out to get information about her family. Now, angry Lahane is firing back after his dismissal, telling American magazine In Touch his former boss can’t stand the thought of anyone talking to Federline without her permission.

The fired 45-year-old says, “I was hanging out a little bit and she came out screaming at Kevin for lying around, then looked at me like I was to blame…

She wants Kevin on a leash.” And Lahane, who has also tended pools owned by Barbara Streisand and film-maker James Cameron, among others, admits Spears is, by far, the meanest boss he has ever had.

He adds, “(I’m told) she fires everybody. I figured, ‘Why not me?’ I just didn’t expect her to be so mean. “It’s a revolving door there. She’s not the nice person everyone thinks she is.”