'He told me to write things down': Kate Garraway reveals how pal Piers Morgan helped with her new memoir at the start of husband Derek Draper's COVID battle
Kate Garraway has revealed that her former GMB co-star Piers Morgan advised her to keep notes on husband Derek Draper's battle with COVID.
Following the publication of her book The Power of Hope, she told Iain Dale on LBC Radio on Friday that the tome may not have happened if it hadn't been for 56-year-old Piers' suggestion at the start of her husband's ongoing ordeal.
The TV star, 53, told how the journalist said to her to write everything down, but that she didn't at first because 'there didn't seem time', yet later took his advice.
Wise words: Kate Garraway released her new memoir The Power of Hope and revealed she was given advice by Piers Morgan to keep notes of husband Derek Draper's battle with Covid (pictured together in 2018)
In her new memoir, The Power Of Hope, Kate tells in raw detail about Derek's ordeal and pays tribute to 'the brilliant team of doctors and specialists' who've looked after him and how what they've learnt has helped the treatment of others.
She describes how the toughest experience of her life began in March last year when Derek was taken to hospital with very low oxygen levels.
His condition worsened and he became one of the most stricken patients, remaining in intensive care for a year and despite having returned home he is seriously ill and doctors say he was the most seriously sick patient to have survived the virus.
Discussing her path to releasing the book, Kate gave the candid interview on Friday, where she attributed her notes to Piers saying: 'It was actually Piers Morgan who very early on said 'you've got to write this down...
New: The Good Morning Britain presenter, 53, said the book (pictured) might not have happened if it hadn't been for Piers' suggestion to keep notes
'And I didn't, really, because there didn't seem time to write things down. But he said to just write words that you'll remember because he said you won't remember some of these things.'
The mother-of-two added that when her husband first fell ill, she was keeping 'huge amounts of notes' of his condition due to how busy staff were.
She said: 'I began to take lots of notes about things like oxygen levels, liver enzymes and everything, so I've got this strange sort of medical book.'
Prior to her chat, Piers urged followers to read the book as he took to Twitter to pen: 'This is such a fantastic book. Powerful, moving, heart-breaking, inspiring, courageous and funny'.
Struck down: Derek contracted Covid last year and also suffered with complications caused by the virus. He was hospitalised in April and doctors put him into a coma the following month (pictured in 2019)
Kate recently revealed that Derek had a rare brain inflammation in an extract from her book, published in Metro.
She explains: 'This, they told me, was a unique historical event, a one-off splurge of inflammation, and the fact that it showed up in some form on the earlier CT scans from back in April meant it happened right at the start when Derek was first on ECMO [a machine which oxygenates the blood].'
Doctors told Kate: 'We can't rule out some kind of recovery, but we can't rule out him never recovering.'
Meanwhile, Kate recently admitted she feared at one point that Derek - who recently came home after a year in hospital - may never remember her and their kids, Darcey, 15 and Billy, 11.
Speaking on 'This Morning', she said: 'For me, I just dreaded he wouldn't remember us, which is rather selfish of me actually. Because I don't know whether he would've been in a better or worse position.
'At one point we thought we might be caring for him at home and we'd be strangers. And that's terrifying for him, and strange for us.
'But he definitely knows us, and he definitely is pleased to be home, and we're so glad to have him home.'
Candid: Kate admitted she feared at one point that Derek - who recently came home after a year in hospital - may never remember her and their kids, Darcey, 15 and Billy, 11 (pictured with her children in 2019)
