‘The Archers’ cast have returned to the studio.
The long-running BBC Radio 4 soap – which first aired in 1951 – had left some listeners disappointed by summer episodes featuring characters’ monologues and one-way phone calls, after the coronavirus pandemic forced the stars to record their lines at home.
Now, studio sessions are getting back underway this week. But the programme is usually recorded six weeks in advance, meaning fans might not hear the new episodes until October.
Radio 4, confirmed the initial sessions will feature just three actors because of social distancing regulations.
Other safety measures will include "zones" around each microphone to encourage actors to remain apart, while there will also be temperature checks upon arrival.
There will be some remote recording alongside the studio sessions at The Mailbox in Birmingham.
The soap’s editor Jeremy Howe said: "Dealing with the impact of coronavirus has been an enormous challenge, but listeners have now started to hear certain storylines resume as well as dialogue.
"As we start recording in the studio again, our aim is to get back to ‘The Archers’ as it was before the pandemic, but it will be step by gradual step."
Despite the changes in production being made for safety reasons, Radio 4’s controller Mohit Bakaya recently apologised to those who didn’t enjoy the new format.
He explained: "I’m very proud of the team for keeping [the programme] going in incredibly difficult circumstances.
"The challenges were tricky for ‘The Archers’; I accept totally that some people have not enjoyed the monologues and I’m sorry about that…
"We’re going to start moving back to ‘The Archers’ we all know and love and I hope that those people, if there are any who have drifted away, will come back to find ‘The Archers’… in fine form."