Kate’s Life Stories reveals more about John Barnes

Cast your mind back to December last year.

Kate Garraway made an appearance on Piers Morgan’s Life Stories in one of the long-running show’s most emotional episodes.

In it, she discussed her beloved husband Derek Draper’s ongoing recovery from Covid-19; he is believed to be the UK’s longest-surviving coronavirus inpatient, having spent 13 months in hospital before finally returning home last year.

She revealed that shortly before the programme was recorded, he finally uttered the phrase “I love you.”

“It’s moments like that which make you realise he is there, and we have had others,” she told Morgan.

“He will turn to me and say ‘I love you.’ He is there, he has fought so hard to stay in this world and I’m not giving up on him, ever.

“He will have moments of clarity, then it’s like he disappears but then he finds a voice.”

As well as offering viewers a glimpse into Garraway’s world, the programme was also a fitting way for Morgan to hand the baton over to her – after 103 episodes, hers was the final one.

Now it’s returning with Garraway at the helm.

“I can’t think of anyone who I’d rather finish my run with,” claims Morgan.

“Kate was a wonderfully loyal colleague during my five years on Good Morning Britain and is one of my favourite people in the world.

“How she’s handled the devastating situation with Derek sums her up.

“She’ll be as brilliant at Life Stories as she is at everything else.”

He also has a few words of advice for her: “I think what you learn on Life Stories is there’s real power in silence.

“It’s a totally opposite discipline to GMB where you might only have a few minutes with someone and you feel you’ve got to get to the truth, especially government ministers.

“But with Life Stories, that doesn’t work. Really you want to use silence. People tend to fill silence so if you just stay quiet at crucial moments, people tend to speak and say what you want them to say.

“I’ve learned that silence can be a powerful weapon, just let the guests talk and fill it.”

Looking forward to her new challenge of digging into people’s lives, Garraway says: “I’ve always loved having the chance to talk to people, both on air and off.

“Everyone has a story to tell and the wonderful thing about this show is that you have the airtime to delve into the areas of guests’ lives that the viewers might not know about already.

“It’s also a chance to understand more about the bits we do already know about (both good and bad) and hear it in their own words.”

The new series is due to consist of three episodes, so it’s going to be short and sweet – as well as unmissable.

Get set to hear revelations from singer Charlotte Church, The Great British Bake Off champion-turned-TV cook Nadiya Hussain and her first episode with footballing legend John Barnes.

There’s going to be love, laughter and revelations!

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