A WOMAN who appeared on cult reality TV programme Wife Swap is to stand trial accused of fraud after allegedly telling benefits staff she was single.

Becky Fairhurst, 30, of Derby Street, Colne, has been charged with three counts of failing to notify the Department for Work and Pensions of a change in her circumstances.

The allegations relate to her appearance on Wife Swap with her then partner Jason Hill.

The couple appeared on the show which sees spouses swap roles and spend 10 days with the other's family in 2004.

They said they were engaged at the time but fraud investigators allege Fairhurst claimed she was single to obtain extra income support and housing benefits.

She will now stand trial at Reedley Magistrates on April 20 in connection with the alleged offences, which carry a maximum three-month prison sentence and a possible £1,500 fine.

The former couple were living in a council home in Padiham when the appeared on the BAFTA-winning Channel 4 series.

They said they were planning to get married in July 2004 but decided to postpone the wedding until after their appearance.

In the show she was depicted as a slob who did not clean, telling the cameras: "A bit of dust never killed anybody".

Chip trays littered the floor of the home and none of the doors were attached to the hinges.

However, the pair ended their rocky 12-year relationship on the final day of filming. It was claimed they were the first couple on Wife Swap to split.

Fairhurst moved to Colne with her three children Tyler, Ziegan and Kiowa days after filming finished in the August.

Speaking after her TV appearance she said: "Wife Swap has changed my life for the better. As soon as Jason and I met up again I knew I wasn't going back with him. We decided our relationship just wasn't working."