Kate Garraway made an emotional plea to viewers of Good Morning Britain on Thursday and revealed the backlash she’s endured after her documentary about her husband Derek Draper was released.
The 57-year-old TV presenter asked fans to vote for her heartbreaking ITV documentary charting her husband Derek’s final year of life, after it landed an NTA nomination last month.
Kate Garraway: Derek’s Story is the third project from the GMB star to pick up a nomination in the best authored documentary category.
It follows on from her previous two documentaries about his Covid battle and her own struggles navigating the care system, which won in 2021 and 2022.
As they finished up a chat with Martin Lewis, Kate’s co-host Ed Balls said: ‘I’m just going to say, Kate Garraway for her fabulous documentary Derek’s story is also nominated for an NTA.’
Kate Garraway made an emotional plea to viewers of Good Morning Britain on Thursday and revealed the backlash she’s endured after her documentary about her husband Derek Draper was released
The duo then welcomed Lorraine onto the show, who congratulated the presenter on her nomination.
Kate went on to confess to Lorraine Kelly and her co-host Ed Balls: ‘I haven’t posted I’ve been nominated yet because I got so much backlash from doing it, for people saying “stop going on about it”. But actually, I realise I’m letting people down.
‘One of the biggest frustrations was that he felt like a total failure, he felt like an incredible burden on the carers, on the system, on us and it didn’t matter what we said, he felt that burden, and he wanted to be a contributor.’
She added: ‘It’s wonderful to have the chance to honour him and also honour the millions.
‘I’m sad because I don’t have the chance to care anymore but I felt it would be wrong for me to sort of walk away from the caring campaign that I feel I have a responsibility for.’
The political lobbyist died in January, aged 56.
Filmed in May 2023, the documentary, which has been praised by critics, confronted the reality of Derek’s struggles and the effect on those around him in never-before-seen images and footage.
Kate’s late husband was plagued with health woes after contracting Covid in March 2020, which saw him put in a coma, battle sepsis and left with difficulties communicating.
As they finished up a chat with Martin Lewis, Kate’s cos-host Ed Balls said: ‘I’m just going to say, Kate Garraway for her fabulous documentary Derek’s story is also nominated for an NTA’
Kate went on to confess to Lorraine Kelly and her co-host Ed Balls: ‘I haven’t posted I’ve been nominated yet because I got so much backlash from doing it, for people saying ‘stop going on about it’. But actually, I realise I’m letting people down
Derek’s Story features him talking on camera for the first time since his health battle as he admitted: ‘I want to be heard.’
In the documentary Kate also opened up about the crippling debt she accrued caring for Derek, admitting she’s at ‘crunch point’.
Faced with a debt of up to £800,000 Kate confessed: ‘Derek’s care costs more than my salary from ITV and that’s before you pay for a mortgage or household bills or anything for the kids – so that is a crunch point.
‘We are in debt and I can’t earn enough money to cover my debt because I’m managing Derek’s care.
‘I can’t even use the money I do have to support Derek’s recovery because it’s going to the basics all the time.
‘I’m not going to pretend I’m poorly paid but it’s not enough.
‘Time and time again the state tells us Derek is not sick enough to qualify for state funded care.
‘I’ve appealed but that still hasn’t been processed three years later. If this is what’s it like for me then what’s it like for everybody else?’
Kate Garraway: Derek’s Story aired in March ITV, chronicling the former political lobbyist’s final year of life before his death in January aged 56
Derek had been plagued with health woes after contracting the virus in March 2020, which saw him put in a coma, battle sepsis and left with difficulties communicating (pictured 2019)
In the documentary Kate also opened up about the crippling debt she accrued caring for Derek, admitting she’s at ‘crunch point’
Kate continued: ‘Something has to be done or the whole service, the people working in it, everything is going to break.
‘We are entirely reliant on extraordinary carers but the system they work for is incredibly complicated and underfunded…
‘Why is it people get sick and it’s no longer considered the right thing for them to be in hospital, why does coming home feel like falling off a cliff?’
Former Labour insider and psychotherapist Derek married presenter Kate in 2005 and they went on to welcome children Darcey, 17, and Billy, 14.
In 2021, just over a year after contracting Covid, he was able to leave hospital and return to his family home in north London, with round-the-clock care.
In August 2022 he was taken to hospital with sepsis but pulled through. Then in early December 2023, Derek had a heart attack and was taken to hospital again.
Tragically, he wasn’t able to overcome the latest medical emergency and on January 5 Kate confirmed that Derek died.
In a post on social media, she said that her husband died surrounded by family and that she was ‘holding his hand throughout the last long hours’.
She said his Covid infection had left him with lasting damage to his heart which had led to ‘further complications’.
Kate also thanked the medical teams for making his final moments as ‘comfortable and dignified as possible.’
