Kate Garraway says her husband Derek Draper is “not doing great”.
Kate Garraway says her husband Derek Draper is 'not doing great'
The ‘Good Morning Britain’ presenter was “honest” and revealed that her 56-year-old husband - with who she has daughter Darcy, 17, and son Billy, 14, with - isn't in a great place at the moment, after his battle with COVID-19 in the early stages of the pandemic left him with long-lasting organ damage and he now requires 24/7 care at home.
The 56-year-old broadcaster - who has made two award-winning documentaries on her family’s experience living with the changes in Derek’s health - told Metro.co.uk: “He’s not doing great, to be honest.
“But the battle goes on,” before confirming that she had made steps to secure a private one-to-meeting with the health secretary Steve Barclay.
Kate made a public appeal on the ITV1 breakfast show to the Conservative minister after he was interviewed live on-air by her co-star Susanna Reid, 52, to speak to him on behalf of “millions of people” in situations similar to her own.
She said: “I don’t want to ambush you on air but I have been trying to contact you and I have been trying to contact Helen Whately as well and I haven’t been able to.
“I’d like to come and talk to you – not about Derek by the way, this is not me trying to get something for him.
“This is about representing millions of people across the country who, like me, in one hand feel like they’re holding the life of their loved one and in the other hand punching away at a system and it isn’t about money.
“I’ve got five points and I’d love to meet with you if you would return some of my attempts to contact you.”
The politician responded by telling the ex ‘GMTV’ star that he was “happy” to meet with her.
Steve said: “It’s the first I’ve heard that you’ve been trying to reach out to me, so that message hadn’t got to me.
"I can absolutely confirm that I would be very happy to meet so we will pick this up after the interview and set that meeting up."
The ex ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ star recently told the Times newspaper that her husband “can neither breathe in oxygen nor expel carbon dioxide efficiently” after contracting the virus more than three years ago.
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