Kate Garraway‘s husband Derek Draper is finally home after spending more than a year in intensive care following a battle with coronavirus.
The TV presenter, 53, has had the family home adapted so that Derek, also 53, could come back and receive round-the-clock care at their property.
Former lobbyist Derek has now been taken off all machines but the family have been warned he still has a long way to go in his recovery from the virus.
Happy news: Kate Garraway’s husband Derek Draper is finally home after spending more than a year in intensive care following a battle with coronavirus
A friend of the family said they have wept tears of joy, adding: ‘Kate’s dreamt of this day for so long, and can’t thank wonderful NHS staff enough.’
Kate and Derek share daughter Darcey, 15, and son Billy, 11, who recently appeared on an ITV documentary about Derek’s illness.
The family friend said: ‘The children, who have been so remarkably resilient, have been so, so happy to have their dad home. There have been a lot of happy tears from everyone.
Health:The TV presenter, 53, has had the family home adapted so that Derek, also 53, could come back and receive round-the-clock care at their property
‘This past year has given Derek and Kate an absolutely unbreakablebond — she has been such a rock, and a total inspiration to everyonein Britain battling their own horror stories with the pernicious disease.’
Kate Garraway has taken control of her husband Derek Draper’s business affairs, a year after the former lobbyist contracted Covid.
The political lobbyist, 53, remains critically-ill in intensive care after coronavirus ‘wreaked havoc’ throughout his body.
12 months on, Kate, 53, has been made the director of a firm founded by Derek.
Documents filed to Companies House show she’s been named on the books of his Astra Aspera Ltd firm.
The company’s name is a take on the Latin phrase ‘ad astra per aspera’ which means ‘to the stars through hardship’.
She has been handed more than 50% of the firm to give her the controlling interest to make decisions on her own.
And notes on the company’s listing show that it is late in filing accounts for 2019 due to Derek’s illness.
Books for 2018 reveal it paid more than £128,000 in tax meaning the firm was taking in a healthy income.
Derek – the firm’s other director – founded the outfit in 2011.
Finances: Kate has been handed more than 50% of the firm to give her the controlling interest to make decisions on her own
A source told MailOnline: ‘It’s been an incredibly tough year for Kate and the family and she’s been left with a lot of financial decisions and complications on top of it all.
‘Making Kate the director for Derek’s company for the time being, was the best decision for everyone to try to manage things while Derek is unable to. It’s been a lot for Kate to handle but she’s determined to tackle it.’
Last month, Kate revealed she had to rely on friends for financial support while off work during Derek’s Covid battle.
The Good Morning Britain host explained how although those in TV are ‘paid a good wage compared to the nurses keeping Derek alive’, she had to stop earning ‘quite suddenly’ last March and turned to pals for support.
Kate said: ‘Working in television, everybody does get paid a good wage compared with the nurses who are keeping Derek alive. But that obviously stopped quite suddenly last March.’
The star said she worried she’d sound like she was ‘pleading poverty’ and added that she’s had to think about things she never contemplated before Derek’s illness.
Heartache: The Good Morning Britain presenter’s husband Derek Draper, 53, remains in ICU almost a year after he was admitted to hospital with novel coronavirus. Pictured in 2019
Kate admitted a major learning curve was the legal side of things, saying: ‘I haven’t really got my head round the legal situation.
‘I’ve been in a continual survival mode. Just thinking, let’s get through today.’
She explained that since Derek’s been in hospital she’s not been able to access his credit card accounts or their joint savings.
Kate even revealed she’s not allowed to see her husband’s medical notes because of data protection and them not giving each other power of attorney.
The mother-of-two said she recalled having a chat with Derek about how they should do this, however it never came about, with her saying she probably brushed it off by saying some joke like: ‘You’re not being mine’
Kate also reflected on how she’s been faced with a long-line of problems to fix at home as well as working out childcare for her two children on her own.
She detailed how during the past 12 months their family car has broken down and the replacement was stolen. And while self-isolating to visit Derek in hospital the family’s fridge-freezer broke followed by a flood and failed heating.
Sad: Kate – who shares Darcey, 15, and William, 11, (pictured in 2019) with her husband of 15 years – admitted it is ‘shocking’ to see his current state, including his eight stone weight loss
Adding to the list of bad luck, just two days before Christmas Kate even had to call her agent, who also reps Emma Willis who works for Mark’s and Spencer, to sort some food for Kate and her children to have over the festive period.
It comes after Kate stated she has been ‘absolutely overwhelmed’ by the positive reaction to her documentary, and admitted the ‘battle’ for her husband Derek goes on as he faces a ‘challenging fortnight.’
Kate returned to GMB after the emotional Kate Garraway: Finding Derek documentary aired last month and said: ‘It’s been absolutely overwhelming in a really wonderful way.’
She said: ‘We spoke on Tuesday morning about how it was quite a difficult decision to think about filming it, but you hoped it would bring some comfort to some people or perhaps shine a light on a situation that… or for a group of people who might be suffering away in a way that hasn’t been focused on.
‘I’ve had so many comments from people. The reaction has been extraordinary. I’ve had so many messages from people talking not just about COVID, but about experiences in their own life, where some of the things we touched on have impacted.’