Coronation Street legend Nigel Havers on how lockdown will affect soap actors

At least that’s according to Nigel Havers, former regular of the ITV soap, who recently said the show’s cast and crew must be going “stir-crazy” in lockdown.

"Corrie is full on. I think they probably can't believe they're not acting,” Havers – who played Lewis Archer from 2009 to 2019 – recently told Women's Weekly.

"They're not used to not working and must be going stir-crazy, but they'll get the hang of it!"

No longer appearing on the soap, Havers himself says he’s taking a “lovely” lockdown break. "There's nothing you can do about it so you might as well just lie back and enjoy it,” he said.

"I just obey what I've been told to do, which is keep your distance, don't go out unless you have to, and keep cool, keep calm and carry on - and watch TV!"

Earlier this week it was reported that both Coronation Street and fellow ITV soap would commence filming in June.

Speaking at the Edinburgh TV Festival earlier this month, Kevin Lygo, director of television at ITV, explained that the broadcaster was looking into how the soap could be filmed with new social distancing guidelines.

This may mean viewers could notice more two-character scenes, while older cast members, including Ken Barlow actor William Roache, could be omitted altogether for their own protection.

Coronation Street bosses previously suspended filming due to the coronavirus pandemic in March this year.

In statement at the time, ITV said: “The health and well-being of the production teams, actors, crew and their families is of paramount importance to us and we now feel that the time has come to stop filming.

“We’d like to thank our viewers for their support and hope they continue to enjoy both soaps in the coming months.”

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