Kate Garraway has opened up about her late husband Derek Draper‘s funeral, admitting it felt like an “out-of-body experience”.
Derek died in January at the age of 56 following his long battle with Covid-19 and its after-effects. Derek’s funeral took place on February 2.
In a new interview, ahead of the airing of Kate’s new documentary about husband Derek, Kate opened up about how she felt after the funeral.
Kate Garraway husband
Speaking to The Sunday Times, Kate said Sir Tony Blair gave a speech at the funeral while Sir Elton John played the piano and sang.
Kate said her son Billy also reduced the attendees to tears with a speech. Meanwhile, she said one speaker told stories about Derek’s “Groucho Club years”.
Kate said: “I knew that what was said in the church would stay in the church, and wasn’t going to be broadcast or written up. I just trusted people not to do that.
“But the day felt like an out-of-body experience, like it wasn’t quite real. I got home from the funeral and thought, ‘I can’t wait to tell Derek about this’. And that’s the maddest thing.”
Kate added: “Of course I am glad he is at peace, but he never said, ‘I can’t do this any more.’ He always said, ‘How am I going to get better?’ So I knew that he would fundamentally be sad to have lost the fight. I’m just trying to take things really slowly, and sleep.”
Derek Draper documentary
Good Morning Britain host Kate has a new ITV documentary airing on Tuesday called Derek’s Story. It’ll explore Derek’s personal struggles with his illness as well as the challenges faced by people in the UK living with serious illness and disability. It’ll also focus on carers.
In a press interview for the documentary, Kate said that it was Derek’s idea to do a third documentary. Derek’s Story follows on from Finding Derek and Caring for Derek.
Kate explained: “I remember so vividly that the idea of making this third documentary at all came from Derek himself.
Read more: Kate Garraway ‘concerns friends over burnout following husband Derek Draper’s death’
“I hadn’t planned to make another one. At the beginning of January 2023, he’d been released from a four-month spell in hospital for sepsis and we were very positive about his recovery. Derek was determined to keep on getting better and improving.”
Kate Garraway: Derek’s Story airs Tuesday 26th March at 9pm on ITV1, ITVX and STV.
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