Kate Garraway says Prince William and Kate Middleton ‘related to her children’ amid husband Derek’s Covid-19 battle

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Kate Garraway has opened up about Prince William and Kate Middleton’s support amid her husband Derek Draper’s coronavirus battle, saying the royals ‘related’ to her children.

The Good Morning Britain host was asked about her ‘bond’ with the couple on the 10th anniversary of their wedding, after she covered the big day in 2011, and after they supported her during Derek’s stay in hospital over the past year.

‘I always thought it was very touching how they even knew about things that had been happening in my family,’ she explained.

‘And they related very much to the children, and what it was like for them to have a father that was absent and sick and of course William knew all about what it was like to have a parent who’s not there.

‘But actually watching them when they were just talking to each other getting ready for things, and her sort of dusting off his shoulder, I just thought what a lovely team you two are, they felt very supportive of each other.’

Derek, 53, was taken to hospital last March with coronavirus, and remained there for over a year, until Kate, 53, was able to take him home this month.

The couple share their two children, Darcey and Billy.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge shared a sweet exchange with Kate when they met her on a surprise visit to Britain’s oldest hospital, St Bartholomew’s in London, to deliver a Mirror Pride of Britain award to frontline heroes.

The Mirror reported that Prince William told her: ‘You are doing amazingly though. If it wasn’t for social distancing we would both give you a hug.’

The Duchess added: ‘I think you’re amazing to do this as I know you’ve had such a hard time yourself.’

Kate replied: ‘I think we are all doing OK but it’s very difficult because you can’t visit that often and the children haven’t got to visit Derek. And I think that’s a huge pressure for everyone – mental and physical health.’

The presenter also revealed that the Royal Family offered her the use of a physician to help with Derek’s recovery.

In an extract from her new memoir The Power of Hope – as quoted by the Mail on Sunday – she was grateful but admitted the situation seemed ‘surreal’.

She wrote: ‘One day I received a letter from a member of the Royal Family, offering the services of a Royal physician. How lovely, I thought, although it seemed utterly surreal.’

Derek had been one of the worst-affected Covid-19 patients to survive in the UK.

While she recently revealed that her husband is still struggling to talk, she said her children are ‘beside themselves’ to have him home.

Speaking to Zoe Ball on BBC Radio 2, the Good Morning Britain star said: ‘He isn’t really able to speak at the moment so he can’t tell him off, I have to be the bad guy!

‘They are besides themselves to have him home. They are my heroes. 

‘They know instinctively how to talk to him but not ask too much from him. In a way that grownups want to see the old Derek, they have an instinct, there is a lot of love there.’

Good Morning Britain airs weekdays at 6am on ITV.

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