Good Morning Britain's Kate Garraway was notably absent from the ITV morning show, leaving viewers puzzled as she was "replaced" on the programme.
Regular host of the Thursday slot, Kate, was expected to be on screen, or at least presenting the news if Susanna Reid was anchoring. However, as the show commenced, Richard Madeley and Charlotte Hawkins took the helm, with Marverine Cole stepping in as the newsreader.
However, her absence has since been explained by an ITV spokesperson, who told The Sun Kate is taking two days of annual leave, after working on GMB for five days last week.
Earlier this year, Kate faced the heartbreaking death of her husband Derek Draper and shared his poignant journey in a deeply moving TV documentary that recently premiered on ITV, capturing his challenging final days.
Reflecting on her response to the documentary, Kate shared: "I couldn't really speak for about an hour after that, it was sort of a humour reaction. I couldn't really speak, I was overwhelmed, it was raw."
She continued, expressing her personal grief: "Things that jumped out at me were the unbelievable frustration of seeing how well he was doing, how much progress he'd made, for him to struggle so hard and he fought for so long... That's just a personal sadness for me."
Determined to honour the dedication of the healthcare workers who supported Derek, Kate insisted on airing the documentary.
She acknowledged their efforts, saying, "I thought about the hundreds of specialists, nurses doctors, carers who had put so much of their own time to make things better for Derek and everybody", adding, "These four years had purpose, they were precious. It's not pointless. Life is life."
Kate Garraway has appealed to the government for more support for those who require long-term care.
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The mum-of-two had been caring for her husband, Derek Draper, since he was hospitalised with Covid-19 in March 2020.
Due to the lasting effects of the virus, Derek required round-the-clock care, which placed a significant financial strain on the family.
Speaking on Good Morning Britain at the time, Kate shared: "If it is like this for me, what is it like for everybody else? Time and time again, the system tells us that Derek isn't sick enough, doesn't have enough of a health need to qualify for funded care.
"I've appealed but that still hasn't been processed two-and-a-half, three years later. If this is what it's like for me, what on Earth is it like for everybody else? Something has to be done, or the whole service, the people working in it, everything is going to break."
