Out of their DEPTH

MONICA DOLAN and EDDIE MARSAN on the extraordinary story behind their true-crime drama

- IAN MACEWAN

The story of John Darwin, the former teacher who faked his own death in a canoeing accident and was spotted years later in Panama City, is truly stranger than fiction.

Now his outlandish and ill-fated plan is being retold, from the point of view of his long-suffering wife, Anne, in a new four-part ITV drama starring Eddie Marsan and Monica Dolan.

Up to his ears in debt, 51-year-old John hatched a plot to disappear by apparently drowning in the North Sea near his home in March 2002.

He was declared dead, but was living in the house next door to the family home, while Anne played the grieving widow and received large payouts from John's insurance and pension.

Anne also hid the truth about John's disappearance from their sons, Mark and Anthony (played by Mark Stanley and Dominic Applewhite).

The strange saga continued to unfold in a series of increasingly bizarre twists, which saw the couple start a new life in Panama before John turned himself in to the British police in 2007, claiming to be suffering from amnesia. The pair were found guilty of fraud.

Here, Eddie and Monica, both 53, tell us about bringing this extraordinary story to our screens...

What's your take on the couple you are portraying in this drama?

EDDIE John tried to build a buy-to-let empire and retire early. He had delusions of grandeur and, in a narcissistic way, he thought he was smarter than everyone else. He is a fantasist and Anne is the victim of a fantasist.

MONICA And dealing with a fantasist on a day-to-day basis must take all sorts of psychological gymnastics!

How would you describe the relationship between John and Anne?