A child psychiatrist who is pregnant aged 63 spoke of her joy at her impending motherhood as she appeared in public for the first time as Britain's oldest mother-to-be.

Dr Patricia Rashbrook and her husband John Farrant posed briefly for photographers on the steps of their redbrick townhouse in Lewes at lunchtime.

Wearing a dark coat to hide any discernible bump, the mother-of-two briefly raised her eyebrows in astonishment as she walked through a scrum of journalists to a waiting car. Historian Mr Farrant, bearded and in a grey blazer and green cords, stood beaming at her side.

"We're delighted with the pregnancy...," she said. "We take our responsibility very seriously and regard the best interest of the child as paramount. What we would wish now is the right to pursue our family life in private."

In an attempt to head of accusations of selfishness, the couple issued a statement earlier today saying that a great deal of love and thought had been invested in their decision to have a baby after fertility treatment abroad.

Dr Rashbrook, who has two grown-up children, will become Britain's oldest new mother when she gives birth in July. By the time her son is 16, she will be almost 80. Asked bluntly whether she was too old to have a child, she replied: "No comment."

Severino Antinori, the controversial Italian doctor who began the IVF treatment at his clinic in Rome in October, said that he was "excited and proud" at the prospect of the historic birth.

"The case of the English woman gave me great joy," he told Reuters, adding that the treatment was successful at the first attempt using a single embryo.

He said that Dr Rashbrook, who he last saw in November, was "perfect" for the treatment, because although she was 62 at the time, she had a biological age of about 45.

"She came here with her husband, the couple love each other, she is very slim, blonde and in perfect condition, she fits all the criteria for maternity. She should live for at least 20 to 25 years - we are not giving birth to an orphan," he said.

The mother-of-two's home had been besieged by reporters since news of her pregnancy was revealed in The Sun today.

In a joint statement with Mr Farrant, the couple said: "We wish to emphasise that this has not been an endeavour undertaken lightly or without courage.

"A great deal of thought has been given to planning and providing for the child’s present and future well-being, medically, socially and materially."

Dr Rashbrook, who has been married before, is a consultant child psychiatrist with the East Sussex Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services.

The couple said in their statement: "We are very happy to have given life to an already much-loved baby, and our wish now is to give him the peace and security he needs." They added that they were pleased with the pregnancy "notwithstanding its unusual and potentially controversial aspects".

Refusing to go into details of the treatment received, which is believed to have cost £50,000, the future parents insisted the child’s welfare was their top priority and called for their privacy to be respected.

Professor Antinori has become a controversial figure for his work with post-menopausal women and attempts at human cloning. The issues have divided opinion in Italy, with a poll last year rejecting a proposed relaxation in the fertility laws.

Dr Rushbrook’s pregnancy has triggered a wave of criticism from some groups, which have branded her selfish.

Josephine Quintavalle, from Comment on Reproductive Ethics (Core), said: "It is extremely difficult for a child to have a mother who is as old as a grandmother would be.

"It is just that consumer society that wants absolutely everything, and never stops to think that a child is not a product. She is being selfish and sometimes greater love is saying no."

The campaign group Life also gave warning warned that having a baby at such a mature age was not in the best interests of the child.

A spokesman, Matthew O’Gorman, said: "We see this just as another component in our culture where children are treated as a means to an end. Quite simply, the child is not being looked after properly - one is not genuinely having regard for the welfare of the child.

"He or she is going to be without a mother or father at the most crucial moment of adolescence or when that child is growing to maturity. This is not the way to bring a child into the world."

Dr Rashbrook is not the first woman in her 60s to become a new mother. Liz Buttle, from Wales, was 60 years old when she gave birth to a son called Joseph in 1997.

Dr Rashbrook's pleas for privacy will ring hollow with Mrs Buttle, a farmer who claimed her life was blighted by press intrusions after giving birth to son Joe. She considered leaving her Pant Farm in the village of Cwamm, near Lampeter, for Portugal before finally deciding on a "less drastic" escape to southern Ireland.

The Lampeter Post recently reported that Mrs Buttle, now 68, and her son, now 7, were happy and well in their new home.

A friend told the newspaper: "She once related how she was out driving one day when she noticed she was being followed by a big red Mercedes with English number plates. She was laughing over the fact a car like that stood out like a sore thumb in the Irish countryside. Anyhow, Liz put her foot down and somehow gave them the slip... that part of Ireland is full of little back lanes."

The newspaper reported that Mrs Buttle recently visited her old farm in west Wales. She left Joe in the care of her 25-year-old grandson.

The oldest woman in the world to give birth is thought to be Adriana Iliescu, from Romania, who had a daughter called Eliza Maria in January last year at the age of 66.

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