PICTURE EXCLUSIVE: Kate Garraway’s husband Derek Draper looks healthy as the pair enjoy a pub lunch with his carer
Kate Garraway’s husband Derek Draper looked healthy as the pair enjoyed a pub lunch in north London on Wednesday.
The ITV presenter, 56, and her partner, 55, were joined by his carer as they went on the low-key outing where Kate’s parents were also in attendance.
Derek, was diagnosed with coronavirus at the beginning of the pandemic in March 2020 and left in a life-threatening condition.
Doctors put him in a medically induced coma and on a ventilator and he was in hospital for 13 months.
He has been seriously ill since 2020 and has been in and out of hospital ever since.
Out and about: Kate Garraway’s husband Derek Draper looked healthy as the pair enjoyed a pub lunch in north London on Wednesday
Pub trip: The ITV presenter, 56, and her partner, 55, were joined by his carer as they went on the low-key outing where Kate’s parents were also in attendance
Tough: Derek, was diagnosed with coronavirus at the beginning of the pandemic in March 2020 and left in a life-threatening condition
On Wednesday, Derek was seen being pushed in a wheelchair as he spent time with his loved ones.
He dressed casually in a navy jumper, tracksuit bottoms and comfortable black trainers.
Meanwhile Kate looked stylish in a blue and white flower patterned dress which she wore with a white cardigan and scarf.
It comes after Kate lauded King Charles on Good Morning Britain recently, as she detailed the letter he sent her Covid-ridden husband Derek in 2020.
Ahead of the Coronation, the broadcaster spoke kindly about the monarch and how he supported her husband, who has been left with life-altering after effects from his lengthy battle with the virus.
She said: ‘I think he is a very careful kind man. He put: ‘I really hope that you’ll get the chance to read this to Derek’. And I have had the chance to read that to him.’
The interaction came after the start of the pandemic in 2020, saw Kate voice her fears about catching the virus after meeting King Charles just days before he tested positive for coronavirus.
At the time, she spoke about the meeting live on Good Morning Britain, revealing that the pair had got ‘relatively close’ at the Prince’s Trust Awards on March 11. Derek was diagnosed with the virus soon after the exchange.
Scary: Doctors put him in a medically induced coma and on a ventilator and he was in hospital for 13 months
Turbulent: Derek has been seriously ill since 2020 and has been in and out of hospital ever since
Outing: On Wednesday, Derek was seen being pushed in a wheelchair as he spent time with his loved ones
Ensemble: Meanwhile Kate looked stylish in a blue and white flower patterned dress which she wore with a white cardigan and scarf
Relaxed: He dressed casually in a navy jumper, tracksuit bottoms and comfortable black trainers
Sweet: It comes after Kate lauded King Charles on Good Morning Britain recently, as she detailed the letter he sent her Covid-ridden husband Derek in 2020
Revelations: Ahead of the Coronation , the broadcaster spoke kindly about the monarch and how he supported her husband, who has been left with life-altering after effects from his lengthy battle with the virus
Nice: She said: ‘I think he is a very careful kind man. He put: ‘I really hope that you’ll get the chance to read this to Derek’. And I have had the chance to read that to him’
Support: In October 2021, Kate confirmed the identity of the mystery Royal who helped support her during Derek’s Covid battle
Decisions: It comes after it was revealed that Kate is reportedly planning a trip across the world to find pioneering treatment in a final bid to save Derek’s life
Journey: A source told Bella Magazine: ‘This really is Kate’s desperate bid to try and save Derek’s life and she is willing to try anything’
Trip: As a result of lockdown rules during the pandemic, Kate and the couple’s two children Darcey, 16, and Billy, 13, were unable to visit him as he received treatment
Tough times: However, following the long period of hospitalisation, his body was ravaged with various crippling conditions and he now remains confined to a bed and wheelchair
Battle: While Derek’s long-term chance of recovery is still not known, the ‘utter devastation’ to his body is undeniable
In October 2021, Kate confirmed the identity of the mystery Royal who helped support her during Derek’s Covid battle.
She spoke to Charles about his kindness – which she referenced in her memoir The Power Of Hope – saying: ‘And you might not remember but you were very kind to me because my husband got very sick with Covid after the last Prince’s Trust awards…
‘You wrote to me and gave me help, so thank you very much… and he did improve.’
On Friday, following on from her words about his kindness, Kate also shared a hilarious anecdote of her second meeting with the King.
She said: ‘It was the Princes Trust again and I got very wet on the way there, I was dashing from one event to another, and I found myself face to face with the now king and I had that odour of a wet dog.
‘I apologised for smelling like a wet dog and as I went to shake his hand a massive thunder clap sounded and he said ‘Never mind dogs, have you got contacted with Thor?’
The English MBE recalled the hilarious moment with joy as she praised him for the commitment to his new role.
‘He’s had a very long time to think about it and carve out his role, i think he is very spiritual as well,’ she said.
‘People who know him a lot better than me have said that he will take a moment tonight to think about it.’
It comes after it was revealed that Kate is reportedly planning a trip across the world to find pioneering treatment in a final bid to save Derek’s life.
A source told Bella Magazine: ‘This really is Kate’s desperate bid to try and save Derek’s life and she is willing to try anything.
‘She’s been looking into a number of experimental medical options around the world and particularly in Mexico in an effort to save him from the devastating effects of Covid-19.
‘Kate only wants the best for Derek. She wants to try it because she feels as though it’s her last hope.’
Derek, a former political advisor, has previously travelled to Mexico in 2021 and 2022 for clinical trials.
As a result of lockdown rules during the pandemic, Kate and the couple’s two children Darcey, 16, and Billy, 13, were unable to visit him as he received treatment.
Thirteen months later, Derek was finally allowed to go home.
However, following the long period of hospitalisation, his body was ravaged with various crippling conditions and he now remains confined to a bed and wheelchair.
While Derek’s long-term chance of recovery is still not known, the ‘utter devastation’ to his body is undeniable.
Although Kate insisted that they’d had ‘wonderful treatment’ from the NHS, which were essential in keeping her husband alive, the foreign trips offer ‘potentially life saving treatment’.
As well as the trip, the Smooth Radio presenter has had to spend ‘tens of thousands of pounds’ adapting the family home in London for Derek, which included the installation of ramps, a downstairs wet room and a makeshift downstairs bedroom.
Due to the severity of his illness and length of time spent in hospital he remains unable to walk and has developed debilitating symptoms.
In summer last year, Derek developed sepsis and was again rushed to hospital, where the severe condition nearly killed him.
Speaking about his current condition and caring for him, she told The Sun: ‘There are some days where he literally cannot do anything and it’s like the computer is switched off.
‘He cannot move, and he’s in so much pain as we are manipulating him, trying to get him more mobile so that he doesn’t regress.’
Terrifying: In summer last year, Derek developed sepsis and was again rushed to hospital, where the severe condition nearly killed him
Testing: Speaking about his current condition and caring for him, she told The Sun: ‘There are some days where he literally cannot do anything and it’s like the computer is switched off’
Health: Due to the severity of his illness and length of time spent in hospital he remains unable to walk and has developed debilitating symptoms
She added: ‘He cannot move, and he’s in so much pain as we are manipulating him, trying to get him more mobile so that he doesn’t regress’
Quality time: The whole family was out and about
In good spirits: Kate looked happy on the outing
Health issues: Derek was being pushed in a wheelchair
Group: They walked down the pavement
Lunch: They all headed to the pub
Essentials: Kate carried an M&S bag
Chilly: She had a scarf on
Kindness: Their carer joined them
Smiles: Kate looked in good spirits
family unit: They were out for lunch together
Uphill battle: It has been a difficult few years
Support: Kate was with her parents
Open: The journalist added that it is ‘heart-breaking’ to watch her husband of 18 years unable to move with tears streaming down his face, noting that as ‘hard’ as it is for them, she ‘cannot imagine’ how tough it is for Derek
Hard: Reflecting on the ups and downs of caring for her husband, Kate remarked that every day is a ‘roller coaster’ as Derek’s spirit ‘fluctuates’
The presenter noted that despite Derek’s insistence that they carry on, she says it’s ‘unbearable’ to see him in pain, admitting it makes her ’emotional’ just speaking about it.
However, she added: ‘It also makes me fall in love with him all over again because of that spirit, that determination to keep going. Derek is trapped, but he fights on. We cling on to the good days.’
Reflecting on the ups and downs of caring for her husband, Kate remarked that every day is a ‘roller coaster’ as Derek’s spirit ‘fluctuates’.
The journalist added that it is ‘heart-breaking’ to watch her husband of 18 years unable to move with tears streaming down his face, noting that as ‘hard’ as it is for them, she ‘cannot imagine’ how tough it is for Derek.
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