Kate Garraway celebrated her 57th birthday over the weekend, however, it was an occasion tinged with sadness following her husband Derek’s death.
It was the Good Morning Britain star’s first birthday without husband Derek Draper, who died in January at the age of 56. He had battled Covid-19 and its aftereffects since 2020.
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Kate Garraway celebrates her first birthday without husband Derek
On Saturday (May 4) Kate turned 57.
Taking to Instagram, Kate shared a video of her friends and family singing Happy Birthday, before she blew out the candles on her cake.
“Well yesterday was another one of those sad 1sts – my first birthday since Derek’s passing,” she captioned the post.
“Woke up feeling so sad & thought well I can either cry all day or celebrate life as he did so well. And thanks to wonderful friends it worked! See you on @gmb tomorrow from 6 – happy bank holiday weekend everyone!” she then added.
“Happy birthday Kate and sending hugs,” one fan commented.
“Happy Birthday @kategarraway. These days can be so tough but I feel our loved ones would want us to keep smiling and raise a glass xx,” another said.
Kate supported by GMB co-stars
Today (Monday, May 6) saw Kate host GMB alongside Ed Balls. “We had some lovely sun over the weekend,” Kate said at the start of the show.
“You had a birthday,” Ed replied. “I had a birthday,” Kate confirmed. Ed and Ranvir Singh then sang Happy Birthday to her.
“I’m not sure that my age is a cause for celebration, but it’s good to be alive,” she then said.
Ed then complimented Kate’s yellow and green dress, before they continued with the show.
Elsewhere in the show, Kate also revealed that she’s withdrawing cash from her pension early to pay for Derek’s medical bills.
Kate has previously claimed that Derek’s medical bills cost more than her ITV salary and that she is in debt.
“I have had to withdraw the bit you can tax-free from my pension to pay for belated bills for my husband, who has now passed away,” she explained during a segment on Brits being forced to fork out on private care.
“People are having to do things – it wasn’t a huge pension in the first place – which aren’t what they saved for,” she then added.
Kate Garraway on holiday plans following death of husband Derek Draper
Last month, Kate opened up about her family’s holiday plans following Derek’s death.
Speaking to the MailOnline, Kate admitted she wanted to do something “lovely” after such a difficult time for the family. However, she admitted that it could prove to be “challenging”.
“We will get a family holiday,” she reportedly said.
“But it’s going to be a bit challenging because it’s a different kind of family set up that we have now,” she then added.
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