Five years ago this month, Britain entered its first Covid lockdown. Streets were emptied, families separated and the NHS pushed to breaking point. Frontline heroes emerged, while others flouted the rules. Jonathan Mayo tells the story of the year our lives were turned upside down.
December 30, 2019
Several people are admitted to hospital in Wuhan, China, with high fever and pneumonia of unknown cause. Some have been ill for weeks and most have connections to the citys live animal market. Samples from infected lungs are sent for analysis.
January 11, 2020
Chinese scientists break the news to the world that the illness is a new coronavirus, a variant of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS).
Authorities later announce the first death from the virus – a 61-year-old man who frequented the citys market.
January 23
Most European countries are reporting fatal cases of Covid and news about the fast-spreading virus is making headlines in Britain.
The editor of the medical journal, The Lancet, accuses the media of escalating anxiety by talking of a killer virus, adding: There is no reason to foster panic with exaggerated language.
Several people are admitted to hospital in Wuhan (pictured), China, with high fever and pneumonia of unknown cause
January 29
More than 130 people in Britain have been tested for the coronavirus, but so far all have been negative – until now.
Two Chinese tourists visiting York test positive and are taken to an Infectious Diseases Unit in Newcastle.
February 11
The World Health Organisation Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus tells reporters: We now have a name for the disease. Ill spell it: C-O-V-I-D hyphen one nine – COVID-19. By now in China there are over 44,000 cases and 1,113 deaths.
February 27
Off the coast of Japan, an elderly man aboard the cruise ship Diamond Princess becomes the first British citizen to die from Covid and the vessels sixth fatality.
Britons who have enjoyed the half-term break skiing in Europe are returning home, some bringing Covid back with them.
Off the coast of Japan, an elderly man aboard the cruise ship Diamond Princess (pictured) becomes the first British citizen to die from Covid
March 2
News bulletins are full of chilling scenes from Italy – empty streets in Milan and Rome and morgues overflowing with bodies.
A video goes viral of the residents of Siena singing from their balconies in a show of solidarity.
British Government modelling puts the UK just four weeks behind Italy.
So far, the main public health message is that people should sing Happy Birthday twice while washing their hands.
March 5
The producers of the new James Bond film No Time To Die announce that after careful consideration and thorough evaluation of the global theatrical marketplace its release will be delayed by eight months. Because of the longevity of the pandemic the film isnt released until September 2021.
March 9
There is panic-buying in pharmacies as people strip the shelves bare of hand sanitisers and cold remedies.
Supermarkets have sold out of pasta, long-life milk and toilet rolls.
At Westminster Abbey, Harry and Meghan attend the Commonwealth Day service along with other senior royals; it will be the couples last public appearance as working members of the Royal Family.
Supermarkets have sold out of pasta, long-life milk and toilet rolls (pictured)
March 11
Chancellor Rishi Sunak announces a £30billion package to boost the economy and to help the country survive the pandemic.
The declaration by the World Health Organisation that Covid is now a global pandemic is in stark contrast to TV pictures of thousands packing the grandstands at the Cheltenham Festival.
March 16
The UKs death toll rises to 55, with 1,543 confirmed cases. At the new daily Press briefing the Prime Minister Boris Johnson says: Now is the time for everyone to stop non-essential contact and travel.
The phrase social distancing enters the language as people are encouraged to keep six feet away from each other.
The briefings become an evening ritual for millions, making national figures of the chief medical officer Professor Chris Whitty and chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance.
The briefings become an evening ritual for millions, making national figures of the chief medical officer Professor Chris Whitty (left) and chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance (right)
March 19
Health Secretary Matt Hancock travels to Weston-super-Mare to appear on the BBCs Question Time panel show, taking with him friend and businesswoman Gina Coladangelo to improve his communication skills.
Within months they start an affair, and in June 2021 CCTV footage of them kissing in Hancocks office in contravention of lockdown rules leads to his resignation.
March 23
In a TV address Boris Johnson declares a national emergency, saying: From this evening I must give the British people a very simple instruction – you must stay at home. People should only go outside to buy food or exercise once a day, or risk being fined.
Fitness trainer Joe Wicks starts his PE with Joe YouTube class for kids from the sitting room of his Richmond home and within days millions of families are joining in.
In a TV address (pictured) Boris Johnson declares a national emergency, saying: From this evening I must give the British people a very simple instruction – you must stay at home
March 25
Boris Johnson has Covid symptoms but is still keen to attend his weekly audience with the Queen.
After pressure from the Palace and his aide Dominic Cummings, the PM agrees to instead speak to Her Majesty by phone.
After the call the Queen tells an aide that she couldnt hear what the Prime Minister was saying because he was coughing so much.
March 26
At 8pm across Britain people come on to their doorsteps to clap in appreciation for NHS workers.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridges children Charlotte, George and Louis join in from their Norfolk garden.
Many radio presenters are now broadcasting from home, turning kitchens, bedrooms and cupboards into studios.
Radio 2s mid-morning presenter Ken Bruce explains one of the pitfalls: When the bin men come, it can make it on to the air.
March 27
Boris Johnson, Professor Whitty and Matt Hancock all test positive for coronavirus.
The Prime Ministers aides set up a temporary office for him in No 11 and the connecting doors between 10, 11 and 12 Downing Street are shut.
Boriss pregnant girlfriend Carrie Symonds also has Covid and is isolating in No 10s flat.
Boriss pregnant girlfriend Carrie Symonds also has Covid and is isolating in No 10s flat (pictured, with their dog Dilyn)
March 31
Derbyshire Police are getting the reputation for being the strictest enforcers of lockdown rules.
To discourage people visiting a beauty spot called the Blue Lagoon near Buxton, officers in overalls put black dye in the water and post drone footage on social media to shame people from driving into the Peak District.
A spokesman says: Its not Big Brother. Its just to illustrate the fact that people are going out and making these journeys against the Governments rules.
April 3
The funeral of 13-year-old Ismail Mohamed Abdulwahab takes place in Chislehurst, south-east London.
He died after testing positive for coronavirus and his coffin is lowered into the grave by men in hazmat suits.
His mother and six siblings are unable to attend because they are self-isolating so can only watch via a live stream.
April 5
A TV audience of 24 million watch the Queen address the nation from Windsor Castle.
The equipment for the masked and gloved lone cameraman was brought in yesterday and disinfected.
The Queen offers a message of reassurance and encouragement and ends her message echoing the words of Vera Lynn: Better days will return; we will be with our friends again; we will meet again.
An hour after the broadcast, Downing Street announces that the Prime Minister has been taken to St Thomas Hospital.
In Bedfordshire Hannah Ingram-Moore suggests to her 99-year-old father Captain Tom Moore, who is recovering from a fall, that he walks up and down their driveway.
As Tom sets off, his son-in-law Colin says: Hannah and I will give you £1 per lap, so why not see if you can do a hundred by your hundredth birthday?
A TV audience of 24 million watch the Queen address the nation from Windsor Castle (pictured)
April 6
At St Thomas the PMs condition worsens. He is admitted to intensive care and doctors consider putting him on a ventilator.
Newspaper editors start working on obituaries and Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab becomes acting Prime Minister.
Donald Trump sends over American pharmaceutical company reps with drugs for the PM not approved in Britain.
Boris wrote in his autobiography how that night he concentrated hard on breathing and tried not to sleep in case I never woke up. He passes time by reading Tintin.
April 12
Its Easter Sunday and virtual church services are held all over the country; the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby conducts his service from his Lambeth Palace kitchen.
Boris Johnson has recovered enough to be able to release a video thanking nursing staff for saving his life and declaring that the NHS is powered by love.
April 15
City centres are deserted, pubs and restaurants are closed and there are only a few cars on the road.
Heathrow has just five per cent of normal landings. One of the few planes in the sky is a British Airways 777 bringing nearly three million pieces of PPE from China in a 28-hour non-stop mercy mission paid for by the Government.
The hold and every seat is filled with boxes of face masks, gloves and overalls.
Several fashion labels including Burberry, Barbour and Louis Vuitton have started to manufacture PPE equipment.
April 23
Animals are taking over the worlds streets. Mountain goats are walking around Llandudno, and herds of fallow deer graze in an east London housing estate.
A sea lion is spotted on a pavement in Buenos Aires, and in Tel Aviv jackals roam its parks.
Oxford University starts the first human testing for a Covid-19 vaccine.
Animals are taking over the worlds streets. Mountain goats are walking around Llandudno (pictured)
April 24
President Donald Trump is criticised by the medical community after suggesting research is needed to see if Covid-19 might be treated by injecting disinfectant into the body.
He also proposes irradiating patients bodies with UV light. Dr Deborah Birx, Trumps coronavirus response coordinator, watches appalled. She said later: I didnt know how to handle that episode. I still think about it every day.
May 10
The Prime Minister announces that the peak of the pandemic is over and launches a conditional plan for lifting lockdown.
People who cannot work from home should return to the workplace but avoid public transport.
Bread recipes are topping search engine hit lists and it is hard to find flour and yeast in supermarkets.
Baker Dan Lepard explains the popularity of bread-making: Even if the world is collapsing around you, you have your ingredients and your loaf. Its the survivalist mentality.
Bread recipes are topping search engine hit lists and it is hard to find flour and yeast in supermarkets. Pictured: Shoppers browsing in a supermarket in London in 2021
May 22
Newspapers reveal that the Prime Ministers top aide Dominic Cummings broke lockdown rules in March when he drove his family to Durham to stay with his parents.
One eyewitness spotted him playing Abbas Dancing Queen very loudly in his parents garden and two weeks later Cummings was spotted in Barnard Castle, 30 miles away.
May 25
Following widespread criticism, Cummings holds a press conference in the Downing Street garden, sitting awkwardly behind a table.
Matt Hancock writes in his diary that he looks like a sulky teenager whos been sent outside to do his work for disrupting the class.
Cummings claim that he drove to Barnard Castle to test his eyesight to check he was well enough to drive his family to London provokes ridicule.
Following widespread criticism, Cummings holds a press conference in the Downing Street garden, sitting awkwardly behind a table. Pictured: Cummings returns home after making a statement inside Downing Street on May 25, 2020
June 5
TV presenter Kate Garraway gives an emotional interview to Good Morning Britain describing how her husband Derek Draper is in an induced coma having caught Covid in March.
He is now free of the virus but still in a critical condition. Kate says: The fight with the virus has been won, but its wreaked extraordinary damage to his body and we dont know if he can recover from that.
Derek dies from Covid complications in January 2024, aged 56.
June 10
Care homes have been badly hit by the pandemic – between March and June nearly 20,000 residents in England and Wales died with Covid, about a third of all care-home deaths.
Matt Hancock claimed the Government had tried to put a protective ring around care-home residents, yet many experts blame him for the decision in March to discharge hospital patients into care homes without testing or a requirement for them to isolate.
The First Embrace by Mads Nissen Denmark, a photo of an 85-year-old woman receiving her first hug in five months in 2021, via a plastic curtain
With visits restricted, families resort to video calls or simply waving through windows. Westlands care home in Four Marks, Hampshire, introduces a plastic cuddle curtain to allow families to hug their loved ones safely.
The manager explains: We have quite a lot of dementia patients so they might not be aware of what is going on in the world.
They may not be aware of when they had their last visit but theyre aware of when they last had their cuddle.
July 4
For the past four months people have been unable to get their hair cut so many have resorted to cutting their own, or letting it grow long for the lockdown look.
Today hundreds flock to the hairdressers as part of Super Saturday as hairdressers, pubs and restaurants re-open.
One woman tells ITN that even after two hours and 100 YouTube videos she still botched her partners haircut. He appreciated my effort but was very grateful that he doesnt have to see anyone for a few weeks, she said.
July 8
Rishi Sunak announces his Eat Out to Help Out initiative and to promote the scheme heads to a branch of Wagamamas and hands out food to customers.
The fact the Chancellor isnt wearing a mask draws widespread criticism. Later research reveals that the £850 million scheme resulted in about 5,000 additional infections – approximately 17 per cent of new Covid-19 clusters.
Rishi Sunak announces his Eat Out to Help Out initiative and to promote the scheme heads to a branch of Wagamamas and hands out food to customers. Pictured: Sunak placing an Eat Out To Help Out sticker in the window of a business during a visit to Rothesay, Isle of Bute, Scotland
July 17
Captain Tom Moore is knighted by the Queen outside at Windsor Castle.
It is her first face-to-face meeting with a member of the public since March.
Captain Tom jokes: If I kneel down I may never get up again! In just four months he has raised £33 million for NHS Charities Together.
Boris Johnson is keen to regain his fitness but is limited by security considerations where he can run, so the Queen gives him special permission to use the gardens of Buckingham Palace.
September 14
There is a worrying rise in cases, so the so-called Rule of Six comes into force, banning indoor and outdoor social gatherings of more than six people in England.
Morrisons supermarket reinstates marshals on the doors of its supermarkets to stop overcrowding and to remind shoppers to wear face masks.
September 29
With the global death toll just below one million, President Trump and Joe Biden take part in the first presidential debate.
Mark Meadows, Trumps chief of staff, later reveals Trump had tested positive three days earlier.
In his memoir, Meadows cleaned up the presidents response when he received the bad news. Oh spit, youve gotta be trucking lidding me. Four days later, the then 74-year-old is taken to hospital.
October 12
Covid cases are on the rise and so Boris Johnson tells the nation: Figures are flashing at us like dashboard warnings in a passenger jet.
He sets out a new three-tiered system for Covid restrictions in England to simplify the rules.
Household mixing is limited and pubs closed.
In France, infections are also soaring. Jean Castex, the French prime minister, says: The second wave is here. Nothing can be ruled out given what were seeing in our hospitals.
Covid cases are on the rise and so Boris Johnson tells the nation: Figures are flashing at us like dashboard warnings in a passenger jet. Pictured: Johnsons briefing on October 12, 2020
October 31
The UK passes one million confirmed cases, and Minister for the Cabinet Office Michael Gove warns the PM that if he doesnt introduce a second lockdown, ambulances will be arriving at hospitals and getting turned away because they dont have the space. We will be sending in soldiers to guard the hospitals to keep people out. Wales is already in a firebreak lockdown.
November 9
Four days after the second national lockdown comes into force, Pfizer/BioNTech announces its vaccine is 90 per cent effective after two doses and, as the Vaccine Task Force has ordered 40 million jabs, the UK will have enough to vaccinate 20 million people.
Pfizer CEO Dr Albert Bourla says: Today is a great day for science and humanity.
November 13
After internal battles over his role as Boris Johnsons chief adviser and the row over his notorious Barnard Castle trip, Dominic Cummings is dismissed by the PM.
Cummings exits No 10 by the front door carrying a large box, which pundits believe is designed to send a message to the PM that he has the ammunition to attack him if necessary. The box is in fact empty.
Cummings exits No 10 by the front door carrying a large box (pictured), which pundits believe is designed to send a message to the PM
November 19
Brexit negotiations are suspended after a member of the EUs team tests positive for coronavirus.
The EUs chief negotiator Michel Barnier is forced to go into self-isolation.
The World Health Organisation announces that someone in Europe dies from Covid every 17 seconds.
November 23
Results of a major trial show the AstraZeneca vaccine to be highly effective.
The PM sets out the Governments winter plan – a return to the three-tier regional approach, with a five-day relaxation at Christmas allowing households to mix.
Boris jokes Tis the season to be jolly, but it is also the season to be jolly careful, especially with elderly relatives.
December 8
A day millions have longed for. At 6.31am at University Hospital, Coventry, matron May Parsons administers the first dose of Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine to grandmother Margaret Keenan, 90.
She says to reporters, Im doing it for Britain. The UK death toll has passed 60,000; the global toll exceeds 1.5 million.
At 6.31am at University Hospital, Coventry, matron May Parsons administers the first dose of Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine to grandmother Margaret Keenan, 90 (pictured)
December 19
Studies show that a new, so-called Kent or delta variant is spreading infections 70 per cent faster than the original Covid strain.
To the dismay of millions, tougher restrictions for London and south-east England are announced with a new Tier 4 Stay at Home alert level and Christmas mixing rules are tightened.
Britain is dubbed Plague Island by newspapers around the world.
Christmas Day
The World Health Organisation spokesman has a reassuring message for children: I understand the concern for Santa because he is of older age. I can tell you that Santa Claus is immune from this virus.
In her annual Christmas Day broadcast, the Queen praises the British people for rising magnificently to the challenges of the year.
December 31
In Wuhan, crowds gather to celebrate the New Year. Edinburghs traditional street party is cancelled so videos of a drone display are broadcast instead.
With most of the UK under lockdown rules the BBCs coverage is called The Big New Years In.
In Wuhan, crowds gather to celebrate the New Year (pictured)
January 4, 2021
Scottish MP Margaret Ferrier, 60, is arrested for failing to observe Covid regulations.
On September 26 she had taken a Covid test and, while waiting for the results, went to church and then a bar.
The next day she travelled to London by train, spoke in the Commons then found she had Covid and then travelled back to Scotland.
January 6
England enters a third national lockdown. Derbyshire police surround Jessica Allen and Eliza Moore, both 27, out walking near a reservoir. Jessica assumes there has been a murder.
They are told by the officers that their cups of peppermint tea are classed as a picnic and are each fined £200. The fines are later rescinded following a public outcry.
February 2
Captain Sir Tom Moore dies in hospital with Covid. At his funeral only eight family members are allowed to attend.
A sword rests on his coffin engraved with his motto: Tomorrow will be a good day.
In 2024 the Charity Commission accuse Hannah Ingram-Moore and her husband of damaging public trust in charities by refusing to donate any of the £1.4 million they received from her fathers book deal.
Captain Sir Tom Moore (pictured) dies in hospital with Covid. At his funeral only eight family members are allowed to attend
February 4
Working from home is now the norm and millions spend hours video conferencing.
During a virtual court case in Texas a lawyer accidentally uses a filter that turns him into a talking cat and Zoom footage of a bad-tempered parish council meeting in Handforth, Cheshire, becomes an internet sensation, making a star of chair Jackie Weaver trying to exert control while being told you have no authority here.
March 19
As part of a successful vaccine rollout, Boris Johnson receives his first dose at St Thomas Hospital where a year earlier he had been treated for Covid. By now more than 26 million people, about half the population over 16, have received their first dose at locations as diverse as racecourses, malls and cathedrals.
April 17
The sight of the Queen observing social distancing by sitting alone at the end of a choir stall in St Georges Chapel during the funeral of Prince Philip, her husband of 73 years, stirs the nations hearts.
The sight of the Queen observing social distancing by sitting alone at the end of a choir stall (pictured) in St Georges Chapel during the funeral of Prince Philip, her husband of 73 years, stirs the nations hearts
Aftermath
Although the Covid global emergency was officially declared over in May 2023, debate over the origin and impact of the pandemic rages on.
Despite early claims that the virus originated in a Wuhan wet market, many are now convinced that a leak from a laboratory in the Chinese city was the cause.
The effect of Covid on British life has been profound. For some, lockdown was a positive experience, prompting lifestyle changes and bringing communities together.
But for others it brought anxiety and loneliness. Research has found that the educational progress and social development of young children was severely affected.
The full impact of the pandemic may not be known for many years.