CB Fry

And here, for absolute clarity, is Prof Neil Ferguson telling everyone that their latest work is showing the disease is slightly more transmissable than previously thought; that the revised death rate is in response to the measures taken by the government; and that they still consider that 500k is the potential scale of death in a "do nothing" scenario.

Just listened to it. Yes, quite interesting but didn't say what your quote suggested. The contributors didn't make any judgement call about the earlier studies and neither of them said "the numbers had been over-estimated". And the main thrust of the conversation was that the measures being taken by the government is the thing that will reduce infection and deaths. Interesting you didn't take that from the section, just wanting to make some shi tty points about wrecking the economy which wasn't discussed. So I think the "they" are the voices in your head mate.

Yes but we definitely take over an exhibition centre and convert into a makeshift field hospital with 4,000 beds for the seasonal flu every year right? Because this is just the same as the flu or something.

As far as I know its owned by Mel Morris. If hes doing some financial gymnastics where he is renting it back to DCFC (that he also owns) then fine but it's all the same guy. I've not read the story so no idea what the plan is.

Not really. Derby would be cheaper, have a huge potential upside by achieving promotion, plus have plenty of infrastructure and potential - good stadium, good facilities, decent youth development, big fanbase.

Just watched Boris. All of us in the pub couldn't believe what we were hearing.

On the other hand he's probably really cut up about McDonald's shutting down.

I think he's at risk of getting the elbow from Sky if he carries on. He's only a few tweets away from saying something that could really blow up. Sky are a news-based organisation and they don't need to be connected with someone gobbing off mis-information.

I agree but the issue is that the Luftwaffe were a tangible conceivable threat and this isn't in the same way. There is on Twitter an excellent thread about the communication posters from the war and how they would apply now, so yes there are some lessons to learn. The biggest issue we face now is that the government comms plan is appalling, and this from the same people that rolled out a comprehensive "get ready for Brexit" campaign with no problem at all.

To be honest the constant comparisons with the bloody second world war are tedious and counter-productive. Not least because there isn't actually any knowledge and experience of what actually happened in the population, just heresay, folklore and facile characterisation. Forget "roll out the barrel" and start asking why the government can't just pump out text messages to every mobile user in the country.

Sticking my fully erect wanger into a large jar of harissa was one of the greatest thrills of my life, until I fell off the counter in the kebab shop.

If you give in to the virus, you're just letting it win. I'm off down the pub.

I think this is due to appalling communication rather than the fault of those people. The messaging needs to be more aggressive because it feels like a huge amount of the population have just interpreted this as being a bonus early start to the Easter holiday. Genuinely I don't think people are understanding what to (not) do. The message needs to be on every ad break all day as of now.

Quite. What he's said makes a lot of sense. There will obviously be a way, in a couple of months time, to put on football matches. The nation, by then, will need entertainment, things to look forward to and talk about. Sport can do that. In mid-May, after two months of everything shut and weeks and weeks of daily news about deaths, children climbing up the walls at home, people without purpose or work, the country is going to be at breaking point. If in June there are tests to test the 50 or so people required to put on a behind closed doors football match then I think they will start doing that. If the widespread national testing of people is underway then it would be completely appropriate. The fragile national consensus of "let's all stay in forever" will be straining and some entertainment/news/focus/collectivism may help to keep it going. The idea that we can beat this virus by months and months of solemn purgatory at a national scale is misguided. Distraction will be required. I'm expecting the BBC and ITV to put on some entertainment events to bring people together, and Sky putting on a week of back to back Premier League football (for free) could clearly be part of it. This isn't China. You can't keep British people indoors with soldiers on the corner of the street. But you can with entertainment. It's the only weapons weve got.

What has been amazing to me is across the five daily press conferences, there has been a massive announcement or huge change every day. Illustrative of the pace of change and the response required. The whole thing inconceivable.

That feels like the long term plan. The testing phase I think will be about working out who has had it and then getting them back to work as safe bets - feels like there is confidence that once you've had it, you have immunity (for a while).

Just to recap you definitely are the only person who truly cares about this crisis. Congratulations. Sanctimonious horsesh it.

"I was into Coronavirus before it was famous"

This coming from a man who has written post after post after post about such vital and important issues like, err, David Gauke not being a member of parliament anymore. Obviously that's jolly important compared to trivialities like young people not being able to see their friends or complete the education they've worked on for many years.

Agree - felt like an attempt to do a two-hander "bottle" episode but didn't work quite as well, they didn't quite commit to it especially as they needed to get the "reveal" in at the end. An episode based on the week they'd actually had - standing in for the vicar - would have been great. Very much enjoyed the three you mentioned though.

Long old list of key workers released overnight. Reckon I could probably take the mick and claim myself as I work in the food industry. I'm not going to but there are loopholes a-plenty as is typical for policy made up on the hoof.

Are you saying that children should be told they don't need to have any friends?

Precisely. The idea that we could have shut the entire country down, say, a month ago on the back of a handful of cases and single digit deaths was never going to play. Ditto shutdown for 18 months. For a lot of people, if that's the plan, you might as well just riot. Fu ck it. And the same applies at the other end of the suppression phase which I think us where it becomes much more difficult. There will be a point - let's call it the end of May - where collectively people will feel they have "done their bit" and actually wed quite like to go to work, have some fresh air and try and rebuild our decimated florist business/building firm/cabbie job. My main criticism of the government is the lack of testing and tracking and therefore the lack of data. I'll generously assume this will come through in the management of the exit-from-lockdown phase as I guess it may be used as a tool to "all-clear" areas/cities etc.

Right decisions at the right time.

My brother has just given me some exclusive inside info that children of key workers will still be able to go to school. You heard it here first from my brother.