Kate Garraway says she’s ‘still in early stages of grief’ on first Christmas without Derek
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Kate Garraway has opened up about the festive season as she prepares to mark her first Christmas without her husband Derek Draper. On January 5 Kate, 57, announced that her husband Derek had died at the age of 56 after a long battle with several health problems after contracting Covid-19.
![[STRICTLY EMBARGOED UNTIL 00:01 24TH DECEMBER FOR BOTH PRINT AND ONLINE MEDIA. EDITORIAL USE ONLY. Mandatory Credit: Photo by Ken McKay/ITV/Shutterstock (15019739y) Kate Garraway, Ed Balls, Susanna Reid 'Good Morning Britain' TV show, London, UK - 25 Dec 2024]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/SEI_234105549-a9a8.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
Almost a year on from Derek’s death, Kate has revealed that she is still in the ‘early’ stages of her ‘raw’ grief. While appearing on Good Morning Britain for a pre-recorded Christmas Day special, the star revealed that she was expecting their first Christmas since his passing to be tough.
![[Derek Draper and Kate Garraway 'I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!' TV Show, Kate Garraway at the Versace Hotel, Series 19, Australia - 08 Dec 2019 Editorial use only Mandatory Credit: Photo by James Gourley/ITV/Shutterstock (10495119m)]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/SEI_190146527-9edf-e1729752786321.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
‘It’s very raw Susanna to be honest. It’s very raw,’ she told her co-host Susanna Reid. ‘I mean this time last year, Derek was still alive – very sick. We thought it was the toughest Christmas because weirdly in 2020 we had a lot of hope that he was coming out… I think that I am [still] in the early stages of grief….
![[STRICTLY EMBARGOED UNTIL 00:01 24TH DECEMBER FOR BOTH PRINT AND ONLINE MEDIA. EDITORIAL USE ONLY. Mandatory Credit: Photo by Ken McKay/ITV/Shutterstock (15019739f) Michael Ball, Alfie Boe 'Good Morning Britain' TV show, London, UK - 25 Dec 2024]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/SEI_234105450-8503.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
‘The pain and the feeling is still there.’. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video. Up Next. On Christmas Eve’s Good Morning Britain, Kate said this Christmas would be ‘particularly hard’ after Draper’s death.
Kate recalled last Christmas Draper was ‘very ill’ in intensive care and said she did fear it would be a ‘grim one’ although her children were ‘very hopeful.’. She added: ‘It’s a tough one this year and for anyone experiencing grief it does hit you. I’m thinking about everybody else who is feeling it.’.
