Kate Garraway was hurt by the online backlash following the public reveal of her new romance with economic journalist Liam Halligan, according to a source close to the couple.
The Good Morning Britain presenter, 59, shared a photo of herself and Halligan with friends at a birthday party last week, prompting abuse from trolls who objected to Halligan having been friends with Kate’s late husband, Derek Draper. Derek died in January 2024 after a four-year battle with Covid.
Despite the negative reaction, an insider told The Sun that Halligan, 57, has no intention of backing down. The source said there was no way he would let trolls commenting on X stop him from pursuing Kate, and that despite Kate being hurt by the outcry at first, she is now not paying any attention to it.
The ITV star and Halligan have been dating since April, though they have known each other for 20 years. Rumours of a romance began in March when the pair were spotted together at a pub in Halligan’s hometown of Saffron Walden, Essex, where he performed with his band.
Halligan has spoken openly about the relationship in a column for The Spectator, describing it as early days but saying there is a definite spark between them. He noted that he and Garraway come from different parts of the media but have much in common, including a shared sense of humour.
He also said he was flabbergasted to find himself covered in showbiz news, writing that nobody had previously wanted to know about his warnings of market meltdown but that reporters now follow him asking how things are going with Kate.
On Mark Dolan’s Talk TV show, Halligan said both he and Garraway had become single against their wishes in recent years and that in recent weeks and months they had become good friends.
A separate source told The Mail on Sunday that Kate is giddy and that her friends and family are delighted to see her finding a way to be happy, while she will never stop loving Derek and is still grieving.
