Heartbreaking: The Good Morning Britain presenter Kate Garraway explores the final year of her husband's life in ITV show

“As some of you may know he has been critically ill following a cardiac arrest in early December which, because of the damage inflicted by Covid in March 2020, led to further complications.

“Derek was surrounded by his family in his final days and I was by his side holding his hand throughout the last long hours and when he passed.”

Kate married the former political lobbyist Derek Draper in 2005 and they had two children together.

Their lives changed forever in March 2020, when Derek was diagnosed with Covid. He was put into a coma in April and did not wake up until October. His body had undergone significant damage, and he would spend more than a year in hospital.

Kate spoke out about his battle with the illness and her family’s experiences in the 2021 documentary Finding Derek, which won a National Television Award.

In 2022, she made a follow-up film, Caring for Derek, which showed what happened when her husband returned home. As well as sharing the family’s own experiences, the documentaries shone a light on wider issues, including the impact of long covid and the challenges faced by carers across the country.

Now, she will chart the final year of his life in the new documentary, Derek’s Story. Understandably, the film is an emotional one.

Kate said: “Obviously, when we started making this documentary early last year, we had no idea the events that would unfold that ultimately took Derek from us. And in January 2024, I wondered if it was right that it should ever come to air.

“But I didn’t want to let those who have given us so much support over the last four years down, and the carers paid and unpaid who, in their thousands of letters to me, feel Derek’s story has given them a voice. Also, I remembered so vividly that the idea of making this third documentary at all came from Derek himself.”

The documentary will take a look at Derek’s life and career before his illness, and explore the way his subsequent health issues affected his family. There are also contributions from Jake, the care worker who supported Derek, and Kathryn Smith, chief executive of charity the Social Care Institute for Excellence.

Garraway said: “I am delighted that the film is a tribute to Derek, his incredible spirit and a tribute to all of those who fight on to make every second of life count, whatever is thrown at them.”

Jo Clinton-Davis, controller of factual at ITV, added: “We can see in Derek Draper’s story the individual tragedy of a life devastated by illness, but also the wider perspective of how a family is impacted.

“Derek’s desire for his story to be filmed, along with Kate in their home, provides an insight into both their personal struggles as well highlighting the exhausting challenges of caring for a family member in the home within our care system.”