Four Corners

In the space of a month, the United Kingdom has recognition. And most of us had no time to stop and to take stock.

on Friday afternoon, as Britain was a different country, a table, leaning against the outer wall of a country pub. A message posted thin had been neat, large letters.

"Unfortunately, a customer who has visited us, tested positive for the coronavirus is read" it. "So as a precaution, we close to Clean to a full deep to. "It was signed by The Landlord and landlady, who apologized for the inconvenience.

The restaurant was located on a quiet, narrow street, which is just outside of Haslemere in Surrey. The patient was gone, and There lived somewhere in The County . In contrast to previous British cases detected up to this point in time - he was 20 - he had been abroad recently. So far as anyone knew, he was The First to catch The Virus in the UK.

On the same day, the 28. February 2020, came another news update. A grim milestone. A British man who was on the Diamond Princess Cruise Ship of The First British citizens to die in Japan has been infected by Covid-19.

this afternoon the children were still in the classroom, and the adults were still at work. The People shook hands and hugged and kissed. In the evening, They Went to pubs and restaurants. Some went out on dates, and others visited older relatives. They gathered in groups and mingled with the residents of other households.

As the weekend football went on,-fans in the stadiums. Christians gathered in churches, mosques, temples and synagogues.

you could go outside, as long as she liked, if she thought not at all because of The Rain . On supermarket shelves, toilet paper and paracetamol were abundant. The recent storms had left large parts of the country flooded, But for most British People , life went on as it always had and apparently always would.

to exist If this describes a British way of life, although it was one that stopped completely within a few weeks.

The Changes didn't happen smoothly, in a steady, almost imperceptible steps. Instead of The British sense of what is normally moved, in the case of sudden movements, as if a ratchet was crack.

On the 28. February 2020 people in the UK were already aware of the outbreak. It would have been difficult to ignore the headlines about what is happening in China, South Korea , Iran and Italy completely. The First confirmed cases among the travellers had to come back in England, as already in January, But it still seemed possible, when something happens, for The Most part, a long way.

Not every newspaper's Front Page this Friday morning led with Covid-19 - the Daily Mail splashed on the saga of Harry and Megan, the Daily Express , with Brexit talks - But most have. In The Last week of the month 442,675 calls were made to non-emergency NHS line 111. The People were not yet in panic, But a General feeling of low-level fear was everywhere.

until 1. March, which had reached virus, the Four Corners of the United Kingdom , cases have been found in England, Northern Ireland , Scotland and Wales. Two Days later, with The Number to 51, Prime Minister Boris Johnson stood behind a lectern and the government launched Coronavirus Action Plan. The outbreak has been declared a "level four incident".

Up to one-fifth of the workforce, you might be ill at its top, the Prime Minister Schools need to be close, and large gatherings reduced. But seriously, someone took The Warning , it was still visualize difficult.

on The Following day, A Woman in the 70s with an underlying disease - The Last four words was soon familiar to grim, anyone who followed the news, was the First Person to die within the United Kingdom , after testing positive for The Virus . The First were published in hand-sanitizer sales in supermarkets.

Every day, The Number of confirmed cases to mediation - 115, 5. March, 206 7. In March, 273, 8. March. 11. In March, The Day that explains The World health organization, a pandemic, Liverpool FC hosted Atletico Madrid - who have already been playing their home games behind closed doors.

There were fears about whether or not it was a great idea, to allow that the 3,000 Spanish supporters fly in a large British city, where you can eat, drink, mingle and sleep. Anyone with plans to fly out of the United Kingdom was to revisit the beginning again.

a Further rotation of the ratchet Stand directly before.

The Following day, the government Tell the Committee of scientific experts, which was shown modelling the expected Death Toll revised. The figures were "shocking". If nothing happened, There would be cases 510,000 death. In the framework of the existing "mitigation strategy" - shield to The Most vulnerable while letting all go about their business mostly as Normal - it would be a quarter of A Million .

In a Press Conference , the Prime Minister said someone with a continuous cough or a fever to self-isolate. His statement came with A Warning not to lose that "many of the families loved one before their time". The choice of words was shocking. Some asked, why, in this case, More was not going to do.

On Friday 13, the London Marathon , the Premier League and the English Football League and the local elections in May were all postponed. Scotland had its first coronavirus-related death.

Saturday 14 and Sunday 15 March was The Last relatively Normal weekend. You couldn't see League football, But you could go to the pub. Hand sanitizer will not be Now , on all the shelves in the supermarket, But you could say, to practice their friends about their plans, the social distance, if you met her on The Street .

Around the country, The People looked at Italy, France and Spain, which are already in lockdown, and wondered whether the United Kingdom was the next. To form voluntary mutual aid, began to provide groups with food and medicine to vulnerable people who isolate themselves.

In Person and on WhatsApp, families and groups of friends in a fight, what it all meant. The demand is for More anxious as to why The British government was More cautious than their counterparts on The Continent . The complained More naive, why you are going to disturb all this. It wasn't just a little flu?

The latter feeling was exactly the kind of thing that the government advisers were The Most concerned. On Monday, the 16th Prime Minister advised against "non-essential" travel, urged people to avoid pubs and clubs, and work from home.

across the country, kitchen tables have been deleted to make room for laptops. Thanks to Skype, and virtual meetings-app, Zoom, white-collar Workers began to look to their colleagues in the interior. Those who could not do their jobs, as you asked this, as they were on earth to earn, allegedly, money and stay safe.

On the 17. In March, the government began, The Daily press Conferences - events, the soon to be regular reader for nervous families. Only Six Days after the presentation of his budget, the Chancellor, Rishi Sunak , announced £300bn in guarantees - an enormous expansion of government intervention in the economy by a Conservative government.

There were always calls to do More to stop British People infect each other. The Following day, most of the students - those whose parents were not notified key individuals were told they would not go Back To their classes until further notice. Exams, graduation, goodbyes to classmates and teachers would Now never happen.

But not to go although the United Kingdom had said, to restaurants, cafes and pubs, many restaurants, cafes and pubs still open. They were quieter than usual, But some customers that came in. On the evening of Friday 20, the Prime Minister - who has a long career as a newspaper columnist steadfast, had proved to be libertarian instincts ordered restaurants, cafes and pubs to close, a measure that would have existed even in the darkest moments of the second World War is still unthinkable.

For much of the weekend that followed, it was bright sunshine, and people flocked from outside, to the advantage of The Last leisure option for you. But if you were crowded Seen in parks and on The Summit of Snowdon, they generally condemned. This Was not, as "social distancing" - Now , as every social obligation - was meant to operate.

The lockdown comes.

On Monday, may 23, 20:30, the television showed the Prime Minister behind a Desk. He was to announce, some of The Most draconian restrictions on individual freedom, the UK had ever Seen .

The British People were being told to avoid human contact, when you need it most.

Source of news: bbc.com