Kate Garraway returned to ‘Good Morning Britain’ on Wednesday (19.08.20) after taking time off to celebrate her husband Derek Draper’s "challenging" birthday.
The 53-year-old presenter was absent from the show for the first two days of the week, and upon her return to the studio, a visibly emotional Kate revealed she’d taken time off to celebrate Derek’s 53rd birthday via FaceTime.
Kate – whose husband remains in intensive care amid his recovery from coronavirus – said: "It was obviously a challenging one under the circumstances. We managed to FaceTime him and sing ‘Happy Birthday’."
Kate thinks their kids – Darcey, 14, and Billy, 11 – are coping "brilliantly" under the circumstances, and the ‘Good Morning Britain’ presenter hopes their love "seeps through" to her husband.
She said: "We had a cake which we ate over FaceTime. It was very challenging for the kids, but they are doing it brilliantly.
"We managed to do it with Derek’s family and technically hook up and sing ‘Happy Birthday’. We just hope the love seeps through."
Kate revealed weather presenter Laura Tobin gifted her a rosebush as a "sign of hope" – and that it began to flower on Derek’s birthday.
The TV presenter also admitted she’s become a target for social media trolls for "having a laugh" on the show while her husband is still in hospital.
During an interview with paramedic Laura Heath – who has been criticised for sharing a selfie during the pandemic – Kate explained: "We’ve talked about this, with me doing this show, if we’re having a laugh and joke – because that’s our job in the morning to cheer everybody – people then say, ‘Does that mean you’re not worried about Derek or you’re not feeling sad.’
"They see her posting and posing when she should be saving lives, not really understanding we’re all human and the most important thing is we have to laugh and smile. Nothing warrants abuse."