The BBC has offered an update on EastEnders, Casualty and Holby City resuming production.
All three continuing dramas were forced to shut down production in the early days of the pandemic hitting the UK, with the BBC confirming at the time that it was following the "latest news and advice from the World Health Organisation and Public Health England".
Following on the heels of the government backing the idea of Coronation Street and Emmerdale returning to filming under safe conditions, BBC drama controller Piers Wenger had his say during a virtual panel via the Edinburgh TV Festival.
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Wenger specifically mentioned that the beginning of work on a brand new series of Talking Heads at Elstree Studios on Tuesday (April 28) under safety guidelines will serve as a potential framework for EastEnders, Casualty and Holby City getting back on set.
Wenger also pointed to the way Australian soap Neighbours has resumed filming, using camera tricks and editing to make social distancing less obvious on-screen.
The BBC executive acknowledged that the three continuing dramas are "not quite at that point yet", but said he would consider options to "[quarantine] actors and crew in order to allow actors to interact in the same space" in the future (via Deadline).
During the lockdown period, EastEnders has been forced to chop down its weekly episode count from four to just two in order to keep soap on air as long as possible.
The cast did reunite last week for a special mini-episode for BBC charity appeal The Big Night In, which saw Ian Beale (Adam Woodyatt) organising a virtual pub quiz night that was crashed by Coronation Street's Liz McDonald (Beverley Callard).
EastEnders continues next Monday (May 4) at 8pm and next Tuesday (May 5) at 7.30pm on BBC One. Casualty next airs on Saturday (May 2) at 7.40pm, while Holby City has taken an extended hiatus.
The information in this story is accurate as of the publication date. While we are attempting to keep our content as up-to-date as possible, the situation surrounding the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic continues to develop rapidly, so it's possible that some information and recommendations may have changed since publishing. For any concerns and latest advice, visit the World Health Organisation. If you're in the UK, the National Health Service can also provide useful information and support, while US users can contact the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
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