EastEnders shuts down filming amid coronavirus outbreak

"Postponed until further notice."

EastEnders has shut down filming indefinitely due to the coronavirus outbreak. The BBC soap has confirmed that they will not be filming anymore episodes of the widely viewed programme amid the Covid-19 pandemic. In a statement released to Digital Spy today, BBC said that production has been suspended until further notice following the most recent advice from the government.

"In light of the spread of COVID-19, after much consideration, it has been decided that filming on EastEnders will be postponed until further notice," said the statement.

"The decision was made after the latest government update. We will continue to follow the latest news and advice from the World Health Organisation and Public Health England.

"We have also taken the decision to reduce the amount of episodes we broadcast each week to two, so that we can ensure the audience can continue to enjoy EastEnders in their homes for as long as possible."

Although production on other soaps like Coronation Street and Emmerdale are currently continuing as normal, ITV has said that the series' content will be putting more of an emphasis on hand washing going forward. Both programmes will "remind people of important public health issues" and "try and do more such messages going forward." "Because we script and shoot so far in advance we don't generally reflect contemporary issues," said ITV Studios creative director John Whiston. "However we are going to use the soaps to remind people of important public health issues such as the need to wash their hands. We'll try and do more such messages going forward."