EastEnders, Coronation Street and Emmerdale given green light to return to filming
13 May 2020, 11:47
When will Corrie, EastEnders and Emmerdale return to filming? Here's what we know...
TV productions such as EastEnders, Coronation Street, Emmerdale and Hollyoaks, have been given the green light to return to filming.
Under new government guidance, the much loved soaps will be allowed to shoot new episodes providing they adhere to strict new safety rules.
This means kissing scenes and crowded pubs will be off limits for some time, as the actors will have to social distance and be at least two metres apart at all times.
Bosses hope this means soaps could be back in action again before they run out of episodes, and won’t be forced off air for any period of time.
However, neither BBC or ITV are at a stage where they can put together plans to return to set, as consultations around filming guidelines aren’t due to be finished until this Friday.
The changes come as part of the government’s latest guidelines for the coronavirus pandemic, which encourage those who cannot work from home to return to their workplaces if they are open.
Under the COVID-19 rules, these workplaces should “ensure employees can maintain a two-metre distance from others, and wash their hands regularly”.
A Department for Culture spokesman said: “The Government is working closely with the screen sector to understand how different types of productions can comply with social distancing guidelines, and give confidence to people in the TV and film industries that there are safe ways in which they can return to work.”
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Meanwhile, the BBC suspended production of EastEnders back in March, and cut the number of episodes it shows each week from four to two.
ITV also stopped filming Coronation Street and Emmerdale and also reduced the number of episodes per week.
Corrie executives recently confirmed new episodes of the soap will reflect the coronavirus crisis.
Boss Iain MacLeod revealed: "The virus will exist in Coronation Street," but producers are "keen that it wouldn't dominate every single story and every single scene."
Now Read: When will Coronation Street, Eastenders and Emmerdale run out of episodes?
