Carol Baskin would care for her first husband Don Lewis “for the rest of his life” if he ever reappeared

Don’s remains were never found and Carol is convinced that if he’s still alive, he wouldn’t know who he really is but if he ever did turn up at her door, he’d always have a place with her and Howard.

Carol – who previously claimed Don was diagnosed with bipolar disorder before his disappearance – was asked what she’d do if her former partner suddenly reappeared and said: “I’d want to know where he’s been!

“And, you know, I really believe he was suffering mentally, so if he’s alive somewhere, he probably has absolutely no idea who he is. But if that were the case, I would take care of him for the rest of his life. I am happily married, but I always loved Don.”

Asked if Howard would be OK with that, she added to Telegraph magazine: “Oh, yeah! He’s an angel.”

Carol believes Don lost his life in a plane crash and is hopeful evidence will one day prove that.

She said: “Every time there’s a hurricane I think something will wash out of the Gulf that will prove the thing he was most likely doing at the time was the thing that would end up killing him.”

The 59-year-old star has only let out her grief at losing Don once, when she received his death certificate in 2002.

She said: “I just looked out of the window, and by the time I came back, hours had passed. I spent the next two days bawling my eyes out. I haven’t had a real episode of emotions since then.

“That’s probably the closest I’ll get, unless we find some evidence of remains.”