'I'm still your mother': Canoe wife's desperate plea to sons as she prepares to spend Christmas behind bars

Anne Darwin, 55, is desperate for a reconciliation with Mark and Anthony - who publicly disowned their parents when their secret was exposed.

After Mrs Darwin was remanded in custody on two fraud charges, amounting to more than £160,000, it emerged that she has wept in her cell when she has thought about her sons.

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They have not seen or spoken to either parent since it emerged that their father faked his drowning on a canoe trip in 2002.

But their mother has not given up hope that one day they might want to see her.

Her solicitor Nicola Finnerty said: "The most upsetting aspect of this whole thing for her is the effect it has had on her sons. After all, she is their mother.

"If her sons would like to see her then she would love to see them or hear from them.

"She hopes her family are well and she's very sorry for any stress she may have caused them."

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Speaking after the five-minute hearing at Hartlepool Magistrates Court, Miss Finnerty said her client was "very tired and very emotional".

She added: "At times she has been very tearful - it's been a long process.

"Anne has co-operated fully with the police. She was crying through some of the interviews."

She would not reveal if Mrs Darwin wanted to see or hear from her husband John.

Miss Finnerty said Mrs Darwin would not be applying for bail at her next court appearance on Friday.

That means she will almost certainly be in jail for her wedding anniversary next week, and is likely to spend Christmas Day in Low Newton women's prison near Durham.

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Her 57-year-old husband is being held in nearby Durham Prison.

Mrs Darwin was arrested at Manchester Airport on Sunday after returning from Panama.

She had moved there seven weeks ago after selling the couple's seven-bedroom home in Seaton Carew, near Hartlepool.

Before she returned to the UK she admitted to the Daily Mail that her husband was living next door to the family home for much of the time after his "death".

Wearing a cream cardigan, white blouse and black trousers, Darwin looked gaunt as she appeared in court.

She spoke only to confirm her name and age in a near-whisper.

She is accused of obtaining a £25,000 life insurance payment by deception in May 2003 by claiming that her husband had been killed.

She is also accused of obtaining £137,000 to clear her mortgage by deception. Darwin let out a stifled gulp as the charges were read.

Prosecutor Philip Morley opposed bail on the grounds that she might abscond.

The chairman of the bench, Stephen Hall, said the case was so serious it could be heard only in a Crown Court.

He remanded Darwin in custody until 10.20am on Friday.

Her husband is due to appear before the same court via a video link an hour earlier.

Darwin was handcuffed by the female security guard standing next to her and then led out of the court.

• Police said last night they have been given almost a dozen potential leads by the public after issuing a picture of John Darwin sporting a beard.