Kate Garraway admits her first birthday in 16 years without husband Derek was ‘tough’ as he battles coronavirus
KATE Garraway broke her silence today and revealed her birthday was "tough" as husband Derek Draper continues to battle coronavirus in hospital.
The Good Morning Britain presenter, 53, shared a photo of her birthday cake and admitted yesterday was her first without him by her side in 16 years.
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In a lengthy post on Instagram, Kate said that Derek believes in the "healing power of sillness" as she shared a photo of him kissing a duck during his university days.
She told fans she has tried to stay positive, writing alongside two photos: "So yesterday was always going to be a tough one - 1st birthday in 16 years without Derek - so for the kids & I, his absence was very present.
"But we resolved to do what I think we are all having to do at the moment aren’t we - treasure & be grateful for the love around us - however distanced we are from it . And focus on the joy of life & love in the moment - the small things that are huge & really should be at the core of everyday, but usually the everyday gets in the way.
"So THANK YOU so much for all your messages they mean such a lot, to the friends @itv who sent chocolate for the kids & uplifting smellies for me, to mates who dropped off food, posh teabags & milk & made me smile at silliness (Derek is a great believer in the healing power of silliness)."
She also thanked her I'm A Celebrity co-stars including Roman Kemp for sending her gifts.
She added: "To my amazing family, to Derek’s friends who sent me messages of fun times they have had with him (pictured is when Derek was editing a student newspaper - insert your own 'his taste in birds' joke here!)
"And the strangers who got this cake >>> from @romankemp & all at @global & worked out it was actually meant for me (was it the bourbons that gave it away??!!) - THANK YOU all."
The much-loved star finished her post with a thank you message for the NHS frontline workers who have been looking after Derek.
"But most of all thank you to the NHS teams keeping derek still with us e& battling everyday to inch him toward recovery #hope #positivethinking #standtogether."
Good Morning Britain revealed on Friday that Derek is currently "unresponsive" in hospital.
Kate updated her followers about Derek's condition last Friday - and admitted she is still worried about his health.
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She wrote: "You may have seen over the last few weeks that my husband Derek has been seriously ill in hospital with Covid-19.
"I am afraid that he remains in a deeply critical condition and is very ill, but he's still alive so there is hope.
"It remains an extremely worrying time for us all and the last couple of weeks have been the hardest of my life."