Kate Garraway and her family have faced great hardship over the past year, with her husband Derek Draper suffering the devastating long-term health effects of Covid.
The former political lobbyist, 53, was admitted to ICU in March of 2020, thankfully returning to his family home last week after 12 months of hospitalisation.
In advance of his return, Good Morning Britain presenter Kate completely converted their North London home, making the building wheelchair-accessible in anticipation of Derek’s arrival.
While Derek no longer suffers from Covid, the disease damaged several organs, leaving him with holes in his heart and lungs.
His mobility has been severely impacted by the health battle, meaning he will likely move around on a wheelchair or stretcher as his recovery continues.
(Image: ITV)
In light of her husband’s health battle, Kate made their home more accessible, ensuring doorways were wide enough for a wheelchair or stretcher.
The broadcaster also installed a wet room in the building, which will facilitate her husband’s bathing requirements.
Kate has looked into getting a lift installed from the kitchen to the garden, making it easier for Derek to move from indoors to outdoors.
Elsewhere, she turned the downstairs lounge into Derek’s bedroom, which has been fitted with his hospital bed.
(Image: DAILY STAR)
Kate has said she will “sleep downstairs on a put-me-up bed” to remain close to her husband following his long-awaited return.
Though Derek is no longer attached to machines, he needs 24-7 care, meaning Kate will be on hand to support him.
In the documentary Finding Derek, which aired on ITV last month, Kate documented the necessary home renovation.
She said: “At the moment what we’re doing, we’ve got an occupational therapist that deals with the layout of the home, looking at putting in a wet room – basically, ground floor living.
(Image: ITV)
“He’ll either be on a stretcher or a wheelchair. And also they’re trying to figure out how to put a lift in the garden.”
The powerful one-off feature shows the family in the living room, speaking to Derek via FaceTime as his children Darcey, 15, and Billy, 11, wave hello to the camera.
With teal walls and crushed velvet upholstery, the family have added an uplifting accessory on one side table – a red lamp shaped like a heart.
Another clip shows Kate walking through the utility room, the walls covered in plastic as the builders revamp the property.
(Image: ITV)
Kate’s kitchen features retro tiling and printed oven gloves and tea towels, with the cosy space widening at each entryway to improve accessibility.
Their sprawling garden was home to Billy’s eleventh birthday last year, with Kate and her I’m A Celeb pal Roman Kemp helping to make the day special for the youngster.
Kate pitched a teepee tent on the lawn and commissioned a special Fornite-inspired birthday cake with matching cupcakes.
On the day, Kate missed Derek’s presence, as she told fans: “Feel so emotional but know Derek will be so proud and pleased.”
(Image: ITV)
Thankfully, now that Derek has returned home, he will be able to make the most of family milestones and birthdays in the years to come.
Kate described the moment Derek pulled up outside the house during an appearance on GMB last week, remembering the tears that were shed.
“When we came in the door, as we pulled up, because I went in hospital to help bring him home, I saw two faces of Darcy and Billy looking out of the window, and then I saw them say, ‘He’s here!’,” she said.
(Image: ITV)
“And they sort of ran out and opened the door and then immediately burst into tears.
“There was a lot of hugging, and then we got him inside and he absolutely knew he was home.”
The presenter, whose memoir The Power of Hope is due out later this year, also reflected on the joy of laying four places for dinner.
Derek has a soft spot for Kate’s casserole, so it meant a lot to her when she was able to home cook the meal for her husband upon his return.
(Image: Instagram)
“There’s just been so many little lovely moments,” she told her Good Morning Britain colleagues.
“I’ve been saying to [Derek] all the time during the coma, ‘When you get home, you can have one of my casseroles’ – which he loves by the way, that’s not a threat!
“I said right, ‘Let’s see if we can somehow get you round a kind of table with all four of us’. So we sort of managed to do that.
“As I was laying out the plates, I realised I was laying out four. It makes me cry now.”
(Image: ITV)
Kate added: “It just feels like the start of a huge chapter but a really, really big and important one.”
Her friend of 20 years Ben Shephard grew emotional as he listened to her discuss his return, replying: “I think it’s really important, as Kate said, she can’t share exactly where he is because there’s a long long way to go and this is a monumental step.
“I remember sitting with her about a year ago, and she was telling me that he’d gone into hospital, and what that felt like.
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“I was thinking at the time, ‘It’s going to be fine, it’s going to be fine’.
“And it hasn’t been. It’s been anything but fine.
“Not just for Kate, for families up and down the country who have been through this and lived this as well.”
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
