‘Coronation Street’ will mention the coronavirus pandemic from July 24th, and the first reference will be "like the flip of a switch".
Producer Iain MacLeod has revealed there will be a "jump on screen" as Weatherfield is transformed into a "post-pandemic world very quickly", and he is anticipating questions about the show’s "continuity" as a result.
He said: "The remainder of incomplete episodes have been shot strictly adhering to the new measures.
"In a manner of speaking there is something of a jump on screen. Fictionally it created a world where people were half acknowledging and half not, which would have been really weird.
"From 24th July it will be referenced and it’s just like the flip of a switch. Very quickly we are in a post-pandemic world and I am sure there will be comments about continuity, but we have a mature audience and I think they will understand and go with it."
But the producer insisted ‘Corrie’ will only reference the virus with "a light touch" and it will mostly be "visually referenced", because bosses are conscious of turning the show into a soap version of 1995 movie ‘Outbreak’, which focuses on a medical disaster.
He added: "We will reference it with a light touch, because the world has been living with this for many months by this stage.
"We will see a lot of washing hands, social distancing, discussing older relatives who are shielding and are not on camera. A lot of our businesses are operating as takeaways but it’s possible that Roy’s Rolls, for instance, might be open by the time the scenes air, but we thought it safer to bet on people not being able to be in big groups in a cafe.
"It will be mostly visually referenced rather than talking about it – the audience has talked about pretty much nothing else so we want to give them some escapism but grounded in reality. "We want to stay true to what ‘Corrie’ is and not turn it into a soap version of the movie ‘Outbreak’."
And the characters will not be seen sipping pints in the Rovers Return, as John Whiston, Managing Director of Continuing Drama for ITV, revealed last week the fictional boozer will be turned into a takeaway pub.
He said: "The Rovers will be a takeaway place. Our communal sets will work in that kind of way. You’ll the odd person wearing a mask. If things loosen up then it’s easier for us to fill that into the scripts when we’re filming than to build lock-in into our scripts.
"We will be reflecting the pandemic, Underworld may even be making PPE."
‘Corrie’ stars resumed filming on the soap earlier this week, after filming was paused in late March.