Derek Draper funeral: Kate Garraway’s husband laid to relaxation right now in service attended by Elton John and Keir Starmer

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Kate Garraway laid her husband Derek Draper to relaxation at a funeral held on the identical London church the place they had been married 18 years in the past.

The common Good Morning Britain presenter, 56, was joined by her and Draper’s youngsters, Darcey and Billy, for the personal service on the Church of St Mary The Virgin in Primrose Hill on Friday (2 February).

The funeral was held practically one month after Garraway confirmed her “darling husband” Draper, a psychologist and former political lobbyist, had died from a cardiac arrest, following an agonising four-year battle with lengthy covid, on 5 January. He was 56.

Among the various recognisable faces in attendance had been Garraway’s ITV colleagues, together with Susanna Reid and Ben Shephard, together with Labour chief Sir Keir Starmer, former UK prime minister Tony Blair and his spouse, Cherie Blair, and Sir Elton John and his husband David Furnish.

Also current had been TV stars together with Piers Morgan, Alex Beresford, Robert Rinder, Fiona Phillips and her husband, This Morning editor Martin Frizell, and pop star Myleene Klass.

They had been joined by political figures together with Labour’s former spin physician Alastair Campbell, former shadow chancellor Ed Balls, former first secretary of state Peter Mandelson, and shadow local weather secretary Ed Miliband.

Draper, from Chorley in Lancashire, was a Labour Party lobbyist for almost a decade. A former researcher for Blairite Peter Mandelson, he stop politics in 1998 after being concerned within the “Lobbygate” scandal, through which he was caught on file bragging to an undercover journalist about his capability to promote access to authorities ministers.

At the time, Draper insisted he was harmless of any wrongdoing however admitted to having “a big mouth”.

He later retrained as a psychotherapist within the US, contributing usually to newspapers and magazines, and writing two books: Blair’s 100 Days, and Life Support.

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In 2008, he based the LabourRecord web site that was supportive of, however impartial to, the Labour Party, and served as a rival to web sites akin to Conservative Home.

He stepped down as editor a yr later, after e mail correspondence between him and one among prime minister Gordon Brown’s key aides, Damian McBride, was leaked.

In the emails, McBride proposed a marketing campaign of unfounded and “obscene” private smears towards senior Conservatives on a brand new weblog known as RedRag, an concept praised by Draper as “absolutely, totally brilliant”.

Brown apologised for the emails and mentioned that whereas he was “horrified, shocked and very angry indeed” upon studying of them, he took “full responsibility for what happened”.

Draper fell significantly ailing through the early a part of the pandemic, and spent 13 months in hospital earlier than he was discharged. He suffered from excessive problems since contracting the illness, together with organ injury, and required fixed care.

His ultimate public outing was to attend Mandleson’s wedding ceremony to his long-term accomplice Reinaldo Avila da Silva final October.

Last yr, Elton John invited Draper and Garraway to be his visitors of honour at his Farewell Yellow Brick Road live performance at London’s O2 Arena, the place he shocked them by dedicating his hit single “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me” to Draper and his household.

Calling Draper and Garraway “inspiring”, John informed his 20,000-strong viewers that the couple had been “through hell” however had “never given up”.

Appearing on her Smooth Radio present the next day (18 April), the Good Morning Britain host defined that the message had been significantly particular as “right up to the last minute”, she hadn’t recognized if it will even be potential for Draper to attend.

“It took weeks of planning and just days before, it looked like he would be too sick to attend,” she mentioned. “But as soon as we got into the stadium and Elton went on stage, he started weeping tears of joy, and squeezed my hand so tightly.”

Garraway spent practically 4 years caring for Draper. Through that point, she continued to shine a light-weight on the household’s struggles in a bid to lift consciousness about lengthy Covid and what it was like caring for a cherished one affected by it.

She captured the devastating and everlasting influence the illness had on her household within the award-winning documentary Finding Derek.

Garraway was awarded an MBE by the Prince of Wales in recognition for her providers to journalism, broadcasting and charity, throughout an investiture ceremony at Windsor Castle in July final yr.

In an announcement shared on Instagram saying her husband’s loss of life final month, she wrote: “I’m sad to have to tell you all that my darling husband Derek has passed away,” she wrote. “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. Sending so much love and thanks to all of you who have so generously given our family so much support.

“Rest gently and peacefully now Derek, my love, I was so lucky to have you in my life,” she wrote.

Garraway was pictured sporting an extended black coat and a pearl necklace whereas getting into the identical church the place she and Draper tied the knot in 2005.

Their daughter Darcey Draper, 17, was amongst these carrying her father’s coffin on the funeral service.

In a tribute after Draper’s loss of life, Blair described the Labour adviser as a ruthless political operative and “an important part of the New Labour story”.

“It is extraordinary and remarkable that Derek survived so long after the ravages of Covid,” he mentioned in an announcement. “And that was in large measure due to the love Derek had for his family and they for him. This also says something very special about Derek.

“He was a tough, sometimes ruthless political operative, a brilliant adviser and someone you always wanted on your side. But underneath that tough exterior he was a loving, kind, generous and good-natured man you wanted as a friend,” Blair continued.

Morgan beforehand praised his “heroic” good friend Garraway’s “commitment, dedication, and loyalty” to Draper by means of his arduous and painful well being struggles.

Writing a column forThe Sun after Draper’s loss of life, the TalkTV presenter famous: “Their marriage was even more magnificently powerful in the face of such tremendous adversity than it was in the good times, fuelled by a mutual love so profoundly deep that few experience anything like it.”

Speaking on behalf of his good friend, Shephard, 49, beforehand mentioned Garraway and her youngsters – Darcey and Billy – had been within the “next stages” of grieving for Draper in an update on 11 January.

He informed GMB viewers that Garraway was past grateful for the outpouring of affection and assist for her household as they navigated a world with out Draper – who she was married to for 18 years.

Garraway, 56, usually supplied well being updates about her husband on the ITV morning programme and fronted two documentaries on the channel about how the household’s life modified following his sickness.

She confirmed she would take a depart of absence from her presenting roles, together with on GMB, after Draper’s loss of life.

The presenter, who hosts GMB and her personal present on Smooth Radio, plans to return to work sooner or later, in keeping with the PA information company.

Additional reporting from wires