Name changer here. I rarely post on this type of thread but feel I must here as quite a lot of misleading advice has been given and the OP's friend is in distress.
It seems that the hearing today is a First Appointment in financial proceedings associated with a divorce. The most important thing to tell your friend is that she WILL NOT be expected to speak in court and most certainly will not be examined by anybody in the witness box.
The purpose of the first appointment is to make sure that all the documentation that the parties must supply to the court has indeed been supplied. Form E is a substantial form and all sorts of documentation has to be attached. The husband will not be able to fill it in at court. If he is saying things like that, he may well be a certain type of gentleman who feels they will be able to ignore the judge and the court process and do what they want. He will be in for a surprise.
The reason there is a first appointment is so that both parties and the judge have a good handle on what the family resources are & what their individual needs are - both now and in the future. If there are children under 18, their needs will be very important. Your friend's disabilities will be taken into account. Bad conduct is not normally taken into account, but it may be where it has had a significant impact on the family finances. So the husband's gambling may be something that the court will consider. However, this must be raised by your friend's lawyers in the paperwork.
The next stage is known as the FDR, where the parties are encouraged to broker their own consent agreement, with the help of the judge. This will require the parties, or their lawyers, to talk to one another. Sometimes a first appointment can be used as an FDR, but not here as the documentation hasn't been provided. If an agreement can't be reached between them, a final hearing will be required and the likelihood is that she will have to give evidence at that stage. Of course, if the husband wants to be difficult, there may need to be further hearings to deal with outstanding matters.
Today, your friend's barrister will be concentrating on the information that needs to be provided by your friend and her husband and will be making representations about what is required, what is missing and what directions (instructions to the parties about what they need to do and by when) are necessary to get everyone ready for the next hearing - the FDR.
She will need to talk to the barrister if she wants to achieve the best outcome for herself at the end of the day. Please encourage her to do so. He will be used to dealing with women who are distressed.
I wish her the very best.