TV mother of seven having twins for childless couple

A mother of seven and star of a UK reality TV show Wife Swap is set to give birth to twins – and then give them away.

Marina Bailey, 34, who was branded the laziest wife in Britain by her stand-in husband, agreed to become a surrogate mother for a childless couple before filming began for the Channel 4 show, to be screened tonight.

She even slipped off for a secret scan while the programme was being made in September this year.

Marina, a call centre operator, from Worksop, Nottinghamshire, was criticised on the show for being lazy by replacement husband Darren Duce-Mills over her reluctance to take on the household chores that her real-life husband Nigel, 37, normally does.

She told Closer magazine that she decided to go ahead with the surrogacy despite being sterilised following the birth of her youngest daughter, two-year-old Kirsty.

She said that, while they did not want any more children of their own, being sterilised left her feeling redundant.

“Childbirth was the only thing I could do that Nigel couldn’t and I loved having babies,” she said.

Marina said she was moved to become a surrogate mother after watching her brother and sister-in-law struggle for 13 years to have a child. They finally had a daughter on their 13th IVF attempt.

“I used to feel guilty telling them I was pregnant again. I’m lucky that I fall pregnant easily.

“I know it will be really hard to give a child away after being pregnant. But my pain is nothing compared to the pain of this couple in their bid to become parents,” she said.

Marina, who had her two eldest daughters by different fathers, met Nigel, already a father of two, in a club.

Within a month they were expecting their first child, she said.

After reading the COTS (Childlessness Overcome Through Surrogacy UK) information pack and receiving counselling, Marina and Nigel were faced with the task of choosing the would-be parents.

Fortunately they chose the same couple.

Marina, who cannot legally profit from the arrangement, admitted she would find it difficult to say goodbye to the twins after nine months but said she was looking forward to helping a childless couple have a family of their own.

“I’ve done this for them so I could never think of stealing their only chance of children.

“I know I’ll get such joy by helping them have a family,” she said.