'I want you back', Amy Winehouse's 'terrified' mother begs her daughter in open letter

The mother of Amy Winehouse has written her an open letter aimed at saving her from self-destruction.

Janis Winehouse, 52, says she is "terrified" for the drug-ravaged singer after she was pictured wandering around London at dawn in her underwear.

In the letter she begs her "stubborn" daughter to pick up the phone and contact her.

Mrs Winehouse tells the 24-year-old: "Early fame has overwhelmed you, it's dizzied you and muddled your mind. For a moment, forget you're a superstar. You're young and vulnerable, no stronger than any of the rest of us."

She adds that many will wonder why she and her husband Mitch have not "scooped" their daughter up and taken her back to her North London home for a "hot bath and a steaming bowl of chicken soup".

But she says the singer must make the decision that she wants to be helped, pleading with her to "take the first step" and call.

"I want you back," she says. "We want to help you, but we know that unless you want to be helped - unless you come to us - anything we tried would be in vain.

"So this letter is my way of making sure that you know that and we will do everything in out power to get you well again. After all, you are still my baby, and you always will be."

The singer's bizarre behaviour has been a concern to fans for some time, but the recent arrest of her husband Blake Fielder-Civil and the couple's enforced separation appears to have pushed her to a new low.

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The troubled singer (who was with two friends) visited a corner shop to pick up an ice drink

It has been claimed that her drug habit is so bad it is causing her teeth to fall out.

And she has also taken to wandering round London in the early hours of the morning, stocking up on junk food.

At the weekend she was seen stopping off at a corner shop to pick up a slush ice drink.

In the past month she has cancelled her UK tour after several shambolic performances, citing the absence of her husband - who is being held in custody - as the reason she could not go on.

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Plea: Janis Winehouse wrote an impassioned letter to Amy begging her to let her help

Fielder-Civil is in Pentonville Prison on remand after allegedly trying to bribe a pub barman he is accused of attacking.

The letter, published in the News of the World, piles "hope upon hope" that the singer's "strong will can bend" and that she will return home.

"Having to cancel your tour has been very sad. But maybe it will make you stop, think and take stock of where your life is going."

Commenting on her son-in-law, Mrs Winehouse adds: "Blake, your husband, might not be my favourite person, you know that, but he's your choice and I would never say anything about him to hurt you ...

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Jail house rock: Amy has struggled since husband Blake Fielder-Civil was locked up

"We were terrified after we saw those pictures of you wandering around the freezing streets at dawn in your underwear. All I wanted to do was rush into those pictures and wrap you up in a big, warm blanket."

Signing the letter "Love Ma", she also reminds the singer of her happy childhood memories.

She adds: "Me and your father and your brother Alex all want you to be happy and quickly restored to full health, that's our priority."

Mess: Amy smoking in a car after a night out in Soho this week