Home and Away actress Lynne McGranger has addressed the issue of whether production is set to resume on the Australian soap imminently – and sadly, it doesn't sound like it's on the cards anytime soon.

The show shut down production in March as a result of the spread of the coronavirus COVID-19, but with fellow Aussie soap Neighbours resuming filming this week, many fans had hoped to see Home and Away follow suit.

However, when a fan on Twitter asked McGranger, who plays Irene Roberts, whether producers had plans to get the cast and crew back on set, she replied: "Sadly no. There's talk of June/July but only hearsay" along with a shrugging emoji.

irene roberts in home and away
Channel 5

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Her comments come after her co-star Lukas Radovich, who plays Ryder Jackson, spoke to Digital Spy about his hopes for returning to work soon.

"I read one of the actors on the show said they'd been changing the scenes so it's two-handers here and there, so they're able to film in isolation," he said.

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"I think it's fantastic that Neighbours have gone back and hopefully that starts off other shows leaning towards that too, thinking outside the box. Perhaps other shows can implement some of the stuff that they've implemented."

Neighbours has adopted new filming protocols to help protect cast and crew on set, with kissing scenes eliminated and actors set to stand further apart during scenes, with camera trickery used to make them appear closer together on screen.

It's currently unclear how long Home and Away will stay on our screens before new episodes run out, but there is still plenty of drama to come to keep us going.

Leah Patterson-Baker (Ada Nicodemou) has made a sudden return after disappearing as she managed to escape from a violent man named Douglas, who had been holding her captive.

It's clear that she is suffering the effects of being with evil Douglas and has also had to process the news of the recent death of Mason Morgan, her partner Justin Morgan's (James Stewart) younger brother.

Home and Away airs on Channel 5 in the UK and Channel 7 in Australia, while Neighbours airs on Channel 5 too and 10 Peach in Australia.

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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