No kissing allowed!: Australia's Neighbours offers a preview of how TV shows will resume production after coronavirus shutdown

Bloomberg

In Australia, where the coronavirus is largely contained, the long-running soap opera Neighbors -- which launched the careers of Kylie Minogue and Margot Robbie -- is back at work after a four-week hiatus. But the show isn't back to normal. "A nurse now flanks the set’s entrance, ready to take everyone’s temperature upon arrival. Only essential staff are allowed on site, meaning many post-production people work from home," reports Sybilla Gross. "Cast and crew have been divided into groups, restricting their movements to one of four different zones across the sprawling lot. Only two people are permitted in the canteen at any one time. Make-up and hair services have been scaled back. Shared changing rooms are now empty. In response, the writers have made changes to plots and characters. Extras have been almost totally cut. On set, in what might be a first in the history of soap operas, the actors must keep their distance from one another no matter how hot and heavy their characters’ underlying affection. There is no kissing allowed."