This will be a real tear jerker
i watched the two previous programmes she and Derek did
this is the final year of Derek life and told in his words
Kate Garraway (https://uk.news.yahoo.com/tagged/kate-garraway/) will front a new ITV programme documenting the last year of her late husband Derek Draper’s (https://uk.news.yahoo.com/tagged/derek%20draper/) life: Kate Garraway: Derek’s Story.
The Good Morning Britain (https://uk.news.yahoo.com/tagged/good-morning-britain/) star’s husband died in January (https://uk.news.yahoo.com/derek-draper-tributes-kate-garraway-husband-covid-123921217.html)
after his battle with COVID.
She previously made two programmes about his health struggles — Finding Derek and Caring For Derek — and will now share his final chapter which will air on ITV on 26 March.
The film starts in May 2023 and looks at the final year of Draper’s life, including both sweet family moments and an insight into his health battle.
But it also looks back and reflects on his life before he contracted COVID in 2020, including his career as a political adviser, his romance with TV star Garraway — who he has two children with — and how Draper’s illness changed their relationship while they maintained their close bond.
The film also highlights the challenges faced by those living with serious illness and disability and those who care for them and will feature contributions from Draper’s carer Jake.
The programme is set to air in just a few days, close to three months after Draper died at the age of 56.
It will be on ITV at 9pm on Tuesday 26 March.
Documentary was Derek Draper’s idea
Garraway has said that she hadn’t planned to make a third documentary but that the idea came from her husband.
Obviously when we started making this documentary early last year, we had no idea the events that would unfold that ultimately took Derek from us,” she said. “And in January 2024, after he had passed, I wondered if it was right that it should ever come to air.
"But I didn’t want to let those who have given us so much support over the last four years down, and the carers paid and unpaid who in their thousands of letters to me, feel Derek’s story has given them a voice. Also, I remember so vividly that the idea of making this third documentary at all came from Derek himself.”
She went on: “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.
One day, we were sitting together while I was caring for him and he suddenly, from nowhere, asked, ‘Are we making another documentary?’ I said, ‘Well I hadn’t really planned to. Were you thinking that you would like to?’ And he said firmly, 'Yes'."
The presenter said she told Draper it should be his story, in his voice, explaining: "Derek got very emotional at the idea, because his words and speech were so limited and there were so many things he wanted to say about the struggle we were all having as a family and he wanted to speak up about it."
When she asked Draper what his main message was, he replied: "Never give up fighting for what you believe in and for the people you love."
“We had to find a way of allowing Derek’s voice to be heard and while having to finish it without him has been so hard, I am delighted that the film is a tribute to Derek and his incredible spirit,” she added.