Kate Garraway lost her husband, Derek Draper, in January 2024, after a battle with long Covid. In the months following her devastating loss, Kate has seen many milestones go by, including her first Christmas without Derek.
Now, the star is facing different milestones: The thought of an empty nest with her children, Darcey, 19, and Billy, 15, getting ever closer to moving forward with their lives and away from home - Darcey is already away at university.
Another milestone Kate has also been forced to think about is the prospect of dating, even though it's something she finds conflicting - and she definitely won't be using dating apps to find any future partners.
During an interview with The Sun, Kate said, "I don’t feel as if I can. It’s a weird one, because I wouldn’t like to think I’d spend the rest of my life without love, but also it feels preposterous at the moment to think of being with anyone else."
The presenter explained, "What Derek and I loved was our home life and just pottering around, and we had 21 years of that, so mentally I am still in that zone."
She continued, "However, I do realise that, when the time is right, I am not going to meet someone in my living room, so I’m going to have to think about the future at some point."
Musing on just how that might happen, Kate shared that in the first instance, she'll start socialising a little more. Veering away from dating apps, she'll be hoping to meet somebody new "organically."
It sounds as though Kate has chosen to take a foray back into the world of dating very slowly. While she builds up to it and grapples with how different her life looks to the way she might've expected, she's also opened up about revisiting working through her grief once again.
"I’ve realised I’m not allowing myself to process," she said, adding that grief counselling might be a good idea. Kate has continued to work steadily since Derek's death, and will next be seen as part of the exciting line up of The Celebrity Traitors which begins on October 8.
Kate refers to taking part in the show as "a deliberate reset" as she addresses her loss and how to continue supporting her children.
In September 2024, she helped daughter Darcey off to university, sharing both pride and trepidation at this huge step in both their lives.
Writing on Instagram, Kate said, "That tiny helpless baby we brought home from hospital 18 yrs ago has gone to uni! Just like thousands of other parents this weekend I was playing that game of student Jenga trying to get it all in the car."
"Such an emotional moment on so many levels and boy, is the house quiet. But Darcey we couldn’t be prouder of you starting this new chapter in your life and know your Dad is with you all the way."
This year, Kate shared similar sentiments when seeing Darcey off to her second year at university, and had the added milestone of Billy starting at a new school.
Admitting that she hung around outside for a while after dropping him off, Kate shared that where children are concerned, nothing gets easier. She added that the expected teen shrug off when asked how their day went, signals "the rejection we parents know means all is ok."
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