Kate Garraway shares major health update about husband Derek Draper: ‘It’s amazing’

Kate Garraway has revealed husband Derek Draper has started speaking again, three years after falling ill with Covid-19.

The former lobbyist was left close to death on several occasions since he caught the virus at the start of the pandemic in March 2020, and is now confined to a wheelchair, requiring care 24-hours a day.

Garraway, 56, was discussing her other half’s health during Thursday’s Loose Women when she shared that he was able to now whisper, a milestone in his recovery.

When asked by Linda Robson whether Derek, 55, could speak, Garraway revealed that he has been learning to speak again.

She shared: “It’s very much a whisper. I don’t think we’re necessarily going to have a conversation, but you get fantastic moments.

“Billy had a new basketball and was bouncing it, and he said, ‘is that new ball?’. He said: ‘It’s nice’...

“Seeing him able to was amazing. Billy was in tears; they were hugging. It’s things like that that really lift you up, and the next day he was really still.”

The ITV broadcaster also spoke about returning Loose Women for the first time since Derek fell ill, adding: “It’s a strange one really. Last time I was on here, I had just got back from jungle, we were planning on renewing our vows....

“In a matter of weeks, we were in that unfolding drama. It feels like forever ago, but it could’ve been just yesterday.

“In some levels everyone’s lives have changed dramatically, but for me I’m still living the scenes you see in the documentary.”

Draper is thought to be the UK’s worst-affected Covid survivor after contracting it in 2020, and has since experienced ongoing health issues.

The Good Morning Britain presenter put her career on hold temporarily to care for him and their plight was featured in the documentaries Finding Derek and Caring For Derek.