This Morning viewers were left utterly divided today as a man described how he’d fallen in love with his wife’s carer.
Gregg Ormondroyd explained on Monday’s show how friendship with carer Anne Robinson blossomed into romance as she looked after his wife Donna, who is in a vegetative state.
Donna, a mum, requires round the clock care, so Gregg chose to have her remain in the family home with carers, rather than put her into a specialist facility.
He explained: “We aren’t entirely sure [what happened to her]. There wasn’t a diagnosis. They think it was a cardiac arrest while she was breastfeeding our daughter, who was three months old.
“She just stopped breathing and had 70 minutes downtime, which led to massive and severe brain damage.”
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Donna is now in a vegetative state and continues to live in the family home, where Gregg now lives with Anne.
Eamonn Holmes told them: “This situation is never going to be easy but could it have been easier if you guys and Donna were not under the same roof?”
Anne defended their living situation by saying: “Donna is always going to get the best care at home and the children can see her.”
Eamonn continued: “Is it more respectful until, whatever happens to Donna happens, to live under separate roofs?”
“We accept what people are saying but Donna will always be better at home where her children are,” said Anne.
Gregg added: “I think looking from the outside in, I can see what people are thinking. But in real life it isn’t like that. It’s a very happy environment. The kids need to be with their mum. That’s every child’s right.”
He said the couple spoke to Donna’s family before taking their relationship public.
They also said neither of them wanted to be discussing their relationship so openly, but suggested it had been taken out of their hands after the story made the papers.
“We just want to explain from our side,” said Gregg.
When asked how Donna would feel about the relationship, Gregg said: “Like any mother, she’d want the best for our children and want me to be happy. Luckily I’ve been given this chance to be happy again.
“Your outlook on life changes when you go through something like this.”
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He added: “When this happened, it was quickly apparent that Donna had gone. She is still alive but has no mental capacity. I grieved a long time ago. It isn’t something we were looking for.”
Naturally, the story gained plenty of interest online.
Some viewers found the relationship odd and worried it was “disrespectful” to Donna to be carrying it out under the same roof as her.
Others, however, felt Gregg should be allowed to move on and find happiness if Donna will never recover.
This Morning airs weekdays at 10.30am.