As Good Morning Britain presenter Kate Garraway ‘grows close’ to her and late husband Derek Draper’s friend Liam Halligan, fellow widow Zoe Matthews shares her own challenging experiences of falling for her late husband’s friend
Two years after the death of husband, Derek Draper, Kate Garraway has grown close to their mutual friend, broadcaster Liam Halligan.
Hours after Liam confirmed their romance, beaming Kate, 58, was seen leaving the Smooth Radio studio grinning from ear-to-ear. It came after the pair were seen ‘getting cosy’ as she watched his band, The Hooligans, play at The Railway Arms pub in Saffron Waldon, Essex, last weekend.
“I’ve known her for a long time,” Liam told Mark Dolan’s Talk TV show. “I knew Derek, I was a political commentator, of course I knew him. In recent years for different reasons, we have both become single, against our wishes. So in recent weeks and months, Kate and I have become good friends.
“We were reintroduced. Kate and a lot of friends came to see my band The Hooligans. It turns out some of my neighbours were excited that she was in the pub and posted some pictures. Kate and I are good friends, it’s early days, we’ll see what happens.”
Kate and Derek’s lives were turned upside down when he became one of the UK’s worst-hit Covid patients, suffering severe brain damage and multi-organ issues after being in a coma for more than 180 days. Up until his death in January 2024, Kate nursed him at home, ploughing all their savings into his care.
In the years since, she has slowly rebuilt her life and last year revealed that she was ready to start dating, insisting that she hoped to meet someone organically and not through dating apps. Now, in what will undoubtedly be a big milestone, the GMB host is said to ‘really enjoy’ Liam’s company, although the situation is far from straight forward.
“Kate has formed a close friendship with Liam and they really enjoy one another’s company,” a source told the Daily Mail. “Liam makes her laugh, he is very funny and they’ve been hanging out with their close circle of mates. Kate doesn’t know if it will go anywhere. Maybe it will, maybe it won’t, but it’s complicated.
“It has been really tough for Kate since Derek died, and she is a mother to two children and they are all still grieving. But they have known one another for 20 years. Liam knew Derek. They have so many friends in common. It’s lovely to see Kate smiling again.”
Navigating love after bereavement with the friend of a late partner is something that Zoe Matthews knows all about. She was just 50 when her husband of 16 years, Keith, died aged 55 in 2020.
Her dreams of growing old together came crashing down in an instant when her ‘easy going, happy’ partner was diagnosed with stage 4 bowel cancer three years earlier.
“It was horrible, absolutely horrible. The worst thing I’ve ever been through in my life, really,” Zoe, from Reading, Berkshire, said. “You know what’s going to happen, but it’s not something that you can prepare yourself for.”
Crippled by grief, Keith’s good friend Steve – who had separated from his wife – was one of the many who offered their support. While the mum-of-three had never before viewed Steve as a romantic prospect, in the difficult months that followed, something began to shift. But the choice to follow her heart was not an easy one.
“I mean, your emotions sometimes are up in the air. I did sort of question if it was the right thing to do, but then I think you sort of get over yourself. And, you know, you just want to move forward and be happy again.
“Steve was just such a kind man, and it just made sense. He did help me through a lot, he was upset, obviously, I was more upset, but he was also sad about it. They were friends for years.”
With children still in the equation – Zoe’s daughter was still living at home – at first the couple kept their relationship secret. “I didn’t tell them straight away. I kept it quiet for a bit, but then I thought, you know, we’ve got to be open about it,” the pub landlord said. “I don’t want to be hiding.”
Ultimately, for Zoe, as appears to be the case for Kate – a relationship with someone she already knew made more sense than meeting a stranger in the ‘terrifying’ dating world.
“After you lose somebody, it is difficult to move forward. But sometimes I think, same as in Kate’s situation, if you get together with somebody that you’ve known for years anyway, it’s more, not safer, that’s not the right word, but I think it’s most comforting because my partner and my late husband were great friends and had been since they were teenagers,” she explains.
“I think there’s benefit in that comfort because they understand you better than a stranger would. I think she’s done the right thing, and you know, [Derek] was in hospital for a long time as well, which must have been awful for her.”
For Zoe and Steve, the key was to take it slowly. Not wanting to ‘encroach’ on other people’s space, Steve waited several years before moving in but is now firmly ensconced in the family. And Zoe believes it is what Keith would have wanted. “All my family were supportive, all my friends. I think Keith would have been happy that I ended up with somebody that he knew really well and that he trusted,” she adds.
Six years on and Zoe says she has a “great relationship” with “funny and creative” Steve. They enjoy music events and the cinema, while he lends a hand around Zoe’s pub, putting his painting and decorating skills to good use. Zoe said, “We get on like a house on fire.”
Considering what she’d say to other widows who find themselves in a similar situation, Zoe advised: “You have to go with your gut instinct and what’s in your heart. Life is too short to second-guess yourself all the time. I was only 50 when my husband died. He was only 55, and he was a lot fitter than me. Believe me. I thought I’d be the first one to go. So I think you have to let go of that ‘What if?’, ‘What if that hadn’t happened?’ Because you’d drive yourself mad. So I think you have to go with your gut instinct and your heart, you know? And if it feels right, then it is right.”
While dating after loss is complicated, experts say that finding love with an old friend of a late partner in such situations is far from uncommon. Courtney Boyer, relationship expert, told the Mirror that priorities shift after a bereavement, with the partner who has been left behind craving trust and familiarity.
“It’s incredibly common for widows to find comfort in someone already within their emotional world, particularly a friend or acquaintance connected to their late partner,” she explains.
“In fact, a few years after my dad died, I considered who could be a possible partner for my mum from the pool of people we knew well. Because in the aftermath of profound loss, familiarity can feel grounding.
“In cases like Kate Garraway the connection may be rooted in shared history, mutual respect, and an understanding of what has been lost. After losing a partner, many widows aren’t looking for something casual; they’re drawn to depth, trust, and emotional security. So much of the initial dating phase is determining if you can trust the other person. This situation alleviates those concerns.”
“What matters most is that the new connection is allowed to stand on its own, rather than existing in the shadow of the past. When both people are emotionally ready and communicate openly, these relationships can be deeply meaningful and supportive. Ultimately, stories like Kate’s can be quietly powerful. They show that moving forward doesn’t mean leaving love behind. It demonstrates that new forms of love, alongside everything that came before, are possible.”
Cruse Bereavement Care offers face-to-face, telephone, email and online support for anyone who has experienced a loss.
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