Derek Draper, 53, the former political lobbyist married to Good Morning Britain host Kate Garraway, 54, is now back at home after spending more than a year in hospital due to severe coronavirus complications. Both he and his wife contracted the virus in March 2020, though his condition was set to worsen dramatically. What happened to Derek?
April 24, 2020 – Derek is confirmed to be in an induced coma
Kate shared an update confirming Derek had been placed in an induced coma by medical staff.
Hopes were that the coma would help his body to fight the effects of the virus.
According to Kate, she would regularly chat with him and even play music for him over video calls, uncertain whether or not he could hear her.
June 5, 2020 – Derek is Covid free
In early June, Derek was confirmed to have fought off the COVID-19 infection.
However, his body was left badly damaged as a result and the virus has left holes in his lungs and heart.
Speaking on GMB in her first interview following Derek’s illness, Kate said: “The doctors manage one bit extraordinarily well and there seems to be a flicker of hope, and then other things emerge and they’re fighting that.
“It’s affected him from the top of his head to the tip of his toes.”
She added: “He’s now Covid-free so he’s testing negative for the Covid virus. The fight with the virus has been won and he’s still here.
“But it’s wreaked extraordinary damage on his body and we don’t know if he can recover from that.”
She is warned that he may remain in a coma for up to one more year.
October 30, 2002 – Derek says his first word after waking up
Derek wakes up from his coma and says his first word: “Pain”.
Kate described the moment as “heartbreaking”.
She said: “It happened when the nurses were moving Derek, as part of his treatment, to trigger the sensation of gravity because he’s been horizontal for so long.
“As they were shifting him, they asked if he could feel anything — not expecting a response as he hadn’t previously. But suddenly he mouthed in a whisper, ‘Pain’.”
October 31, 2020 – Derek begins breathing without a ventilator
After a gruelling 214 days in hospital, Derek’s ventilator is removed and he is able to breathe on his own, though still requires assistance at night.
January 7, 2021 – Covid restrictions ban Kate from seeing her husband
When the Prime Minster reintroduced strict restrictions, Kate was once again unable to visit her husband in hospital.
The GMB presenter said she was worried a lack of visitation may cause him to deteriorate.
She added that Derek was now the longest patient who had been in the ICU throughout the entire pandemic.
March 13, 2021 – Derek regresses and doctors share concerns
Kate says that the lack of visitation has slowed down the progress of her husband’s recovery.
She said: “The very worst moment was when they said he could be locked in forever. And I just thought this is a horror story.
“I don’t know if he’ll ever have any kind of life again. We just don’t know. The change in his body is shocking.”
The doctors told her it was “highly unlikely” Derek would make a full recovery.
March 23, 2021 – Finding Derek airs
Kate shares the couple’s journey in a documentary, during which she makes their home wheelchair accessible to accommodate Derek’s return.
At this time, she says her husband has “no muscle left”.
April 8, 2021 – Derek returns home
In early April, Derek returns to his family home after spending over a year in the hospital.
His recovery is described as “long and gruelling”, and Kate reveals Derek will not receive 24-hour care.
May 4, 2021 – Derek has regained a sense of smell and converses more often
Kate believes time at home with the family is helping Derek’s progress.
She says the couple have shared some “lovely normal moments” together.
His sense of smell has also returned.
She told ITV’s Lorraine: “It’s those strange little weird normal things that happen.
“In fact, one of the nurses texted me and said ‘oh my goodness, I’ve just heard Derek speak’.
“I said ‘oh my god, what did he say?’ and she said ‘Billy you smell of Monster Munch’.
“It’s not quite the profound thing…but she said that he did smell of Monster Munch.”
February 22, 2022 – Kate Garraway: Caring for Derek to air, Kate reveals the couple flew to Mexico for treatment
Ahead of her documentary, Kate reveals she and her husband took an 11,000 mile trip to Mexico for specialist treatment to air his recovery.
Derek underwent extreme oxygen and pressure tests ahead of the flight to ensure his body could cope.
Kate told The Sun: “It took weeks and weeks of planning, and when I told Derek about this place he was excited. He is just so desperate to get better – he will do anything he can to make that happen.”
Caring for Derek is on ITV tonight at 9pm
