Kate Garraway: Good Morning Britain host makes first TV appearance since funeral of husband Derek Draper

Kate Garraway has made her first television appearance since the funeral of her husband Derek Draper - an interview on Good Morning Britain.

The ITV star, who is a member of the Good Morning Britain presenting team, spoke to Richard Madeley and Susanna Reid about her "outpouring of love for everyone that has supported me". The funeral of Draper was held on Friday, February 2, with close family and friends in attendance including Sir Elton John and Sir Tony Blair.

The presenter told Madeley and Reid that she had received a book of condolences filled with messages of love and support from viewers, saying: “It’s just amazing. It feels like my emotions are at 110%. The unbelievable love that we all have as a GMB family, it’s just wonderful. We are very lucky.

“The love that we have as a family all together, which is people watching at home, we’re so connected. And we’ve always been connected in all our joys, and all our fun and the challenges of life, of which poor Derek has faced head-on, and our family has done as well.

She added: “But having those messages, it makes me weep, because I feel so grateful. I’m also aware that there are people this morning that don’t have that sense of love. And I just want to share with you because I know there’ll be people going to funerals today, who will be hearing terrible diagnoses today, who will be facing the worst today. And I’m thinking of them, really, because I know how they feel, and I’m lucky that I’ve got all of you.”

Garraway also opened up about the moment she and Derek were told that he was unlikely to survive a downturn in his condition. She described it as a "stop the clocks moment", saying that they wanted to "world to stop".

She added: “And I think the vacuum you feel at that point, having been entirely focused for four years on: what do I need to do next? What can I do for Derek, what’s happening with the children? All of that - it swamps you.

“Thinking: right, we have what we were told was 24 hours, and turned out to be more than a month of him fighting on and fighting on even though the prognosis was, this is one he won’t make through. And that’s a challenge, because for the children, when they heard the doctors say he won’t survive this, they’ve heard that so many times."

Garraway had cared for her husband for four years after a Covid infection in March 2020 led to him being hospitalised for 13 months. He was discharged in April 2021 but continued to be cared for at home.

When asked about her experiences of caring for Derek, Garraway said: "I’m not sure I did it very well. I think I relied on everybody else, like we all do. I think I’ve got a massive debt to so many people and not least to Derek, actually, because his spirit and fight to keep going, never once did he say: ‘I don’t want to try. I don’t want to do this. I don’t want to do that.’ Nor have the children. The children have been extraordinary throughout.”

Garraway confirmed that she would be returning to Good Morning Britain full-time on Thursday, February 8 after a two-month break. She joked with Reid and Madeley that she would be "finding fake eyelashes" and "applying fake tan" before her big return to the show.