Staff gave a rousing ovation and plenty of cheers as the first Covid-19 patient was discharged from the intensive care unit at Croydon University Hospital.

Local Democracy Reporting Service

Image source, Olympia London

A west London exhibition centre which usually stages 200 events a year has been transformed into a massive foodbank distribution centre.

The move is to help cope with demand, which has increased five-fold because of the coronavirus crisis.

Hammersmith and Fulham Council is using Olympia London to help Hammersmith and Fulham Foodbank step up the amount of food parcels it gives to residents from 160 a week to nearly 1,000.

The foodbank, which is normally the capital’s busiest, is currently offering home deliveries of food parcels to some of the most vulnerable people who are affected by food poverty during the crisis.

Olympia London opened in 1886 and had been planning to welcome crowds heading to events, including careers fairs and a London Muslim shopping festival this month.

Instead it is welcoming volunteers who pack up food parcels to be taken to residents across the borough.

It’s part of the council’s Community Aid Network response and is being led by the council’s deputy leader Sue Fennimore.

She said: "We want everyone to know they’re not alone, we are on their side, and help will be nearby and on its way throughout this international emergency.”

John Hitchcox, Chairman of Olympia London’s owners Yoo Capital, said: "At this time, which has been so hard on so many, we want to help in any way we can and are glad that we can play our part in ensuring the people in our local community get the resources they need to get by.”

Adam Isfendiyar said he was curious about people's lives during lockdown as he passed their homes.

Thomas Mackintosh
BBC London News

Image source, PA Media

An agreement has been reached between performing arts union Equity and the Society Of London Theatre (SOLT) to support actors during the current suspension of West End shows due to the coronavirus crisis.

The deal "covers every eventuality and perspective, from long-running musicals to plays with limited runs, productions yet to open and shows still in rehearsal when the shutdown began," the organisations said.

Julian Bird, chief executive of SOLT, said: "Equity and ourselves have worked tirelessly since the shutdown to protect jobs and address the needs of our West End workforce during this crisis.

"We all need to work together to ensure that we can get through this as an industry, and are ready to welcome audiences back into our theatres as soon as possible."

BBC London

Alex and Slee have created a mindfulness platform to help NHS staff with their mental health.

Charities voice concern for care home residents and call for daily updates on virus deaths in the system.

Thomas Mackintosh
BBC London News

The number of patients killed by coronavirus in London hospitals has passed 3,000, official figures show.

NHS England said that a further 209 people have died inside NHS Trusts in the capital, bringing the Covid-19 death toll in London to 3,071 - nearly treble the amount compared to this time last week.

Forty-three of the latest deaths recorded happened at the Royal Free NHS Trust which now has now seen 328 patients die from coronavirus.

The Royal Free NHS Trust runs three hospitals in north London including ones in Barnet, Chase Farm and the Royal Free in Camden.

Out of the ten hospital trusts in England with the highest coronavirus-related deaths, seven of those trusts are in London.

These include London North West University (299), King's (270), Barts (246), Imperial (224), Croydon and Lewisham and Greenwich (both 181).

Outside of London, University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Trust has the highest in England (460), while trusts in Derby and Burton (215), Sandwell and West Birmingham (204) and Frimley (184) also feature highly.

Figures of new coronavirus cases will be published by Public Health England later today.

The Royal Choral Society recorded the performance earlier this month, keeping the 144-year-long tradition of Handel’s Messiah being sung at the Royal Albert Hall on Good Friday, alive.

Eighty-two members of the group sang from their own homes, with conductor Richard Cooke joining from his garden and Richard Pearce, the regular organist for the Last Night of the Proms, providing accompaniment.

Mr Cooke, the society's music director, said they were "proud to be able to present this special performance, which we hope goes some way to preserving this tradition".

Image source, Reuters

Bus drivers are "absolutely terrified" of being infected while working during the the coronavirus pandemic, a trade union official has warned.

Bobby Morton, Unite's national officer for passenger transport, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme handling cash was a particular "killer" and he had heard "horrific stories" about the situation from around the country.

While payments for bus journeys in London are cashless, there is growing concern over the safety of drivers in the capital, with at least 15 bus workers known to have died in the capital after testing positive for Covid-19.

Transport for London (TfL) launched a trial on Good Friday whereby the front doors on some buses were locked. Other measures introduced include better cleaning and encouraging people not to sit near the driver.

Mr Morton said all of the changes being implemented "merely reduce the risk" of being infected and has called for workers to be given personal protective equipment.

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said "everything was being done to keep workers safe".

Coronavirus prompts spike in mortality with data showing weekly deaths have hit a record high.

A 65-year-old man has appeared in court accused of murdering his wife during the Covid-19 lockdown.

Hussain Yusuf Egal was charged after police discovered the body of 57-year-old Maryan Ismail at their flat in Plevna Road, Edmonton, on 6 April.

Ms Ismail was pronounced dead, having suffered multiple serious injuries.

Earlier, Mr Egal appeared by video link from custody before Judge Philip Katz QC at the Old Bailey.

With help from an interpreter, the defendant confirmed his identity to the court.

Judge Katz set a plea and case management hearing for 30 June and remanded him into custody.

Image source, Met Police

Armed police rescued a helpless fox cub found wounded and alone in a London park.

Officers from the Metropolitan Police's SCO19 Specialist Firearms Command looked after the fox, which they named Bobby, after being alerted to his plight by members of the public while on patrol in Southwark.

Bobby, who is about four to five weeks old, is thought to have been attacked and was found with a bite on the end of his tail in Burgess Park.

He has since been handed over to The Fox Project, a charity devoted to rehabilitating and fostering foxes for release in the wild.

And he is "on the way to making a full recovery" after his brush with the law.

Thomas Mackintosh
BBC London News

Former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has led tributes to Rabbi Abraham Pinter who died in London from coronavirus.

Rabbi Pinter was considered one of the leading figures in the ultra-orthodox Hareidi Jewish world and passed away aged 70.

He ran one of the main schools in the Stamford Hill area, and became a spokesman for the closed and isolated ultra-orthodox community in the United Kingdom.

Tributes have also been paid to Rabbi Pinter from the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, the local MP and former Labour front bencher Diane Abbott, and the Muslim community in the area.

The Board of Deputies of British Jews, which represents the wider Jewish community, said he built bridges between different groups of Jews, the government, and wider UK society

A family claimed a 500-mile round Lake District trip was acceptable if they wore masks and gloves, police said.

They were stopped by officers in Lancashire as they enforced the coronavirus lockdown rules.

The family admitted driving from Greater London on Easter Monday.

Lancashire Police issued the driver with a fine and sent them back home.

The family were criticised as "absolute idiots" and called "clowns" after the force posted about it on Twitter.

Thomas Mackintosh
BBC London News

Image source, Getty Images

Nearly 3,000 people have died in London hospitals from coronavirus, official figures show.

Data released by NHS England said that as of 09:00 this morning the death toll in London had reached 2,865 - this time last week 1,179 patients had died from the infection.

The Royal Free NHS Trust has now recorded 285 coronavirus-related deaths - only the University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Trust has more in the whole of the UK (485)

The Royal Free, which runs Barnet, Chase Farm and the Royal Free hospitals in north London, trust also overtakes the London North West University NHS Trust (280) and now has the most in the capital.

In total, 32 hospital trusts in England have recorded more than 100 deaths linked to Covid-19 - 13 of those are trusts in London.

These London NHS Trusts include King's (254), Barts (236), Imperial College (201), Croydon (173), Lewisham and Greenwich (167), St George's (166), Epsom and St Helier (157), North Middlesex (157) Barking, Havering and Redbridge (134), Chelsea and Westminster (105), Hillingdon (101).

Thomas Mackintosh
BBC London News

Image source, Reuters

The boss of Heathrow Airport has called on global governments to agree on a common standard on medical screening at airports as passenger numbers slumped by over 50%.

Chief executive John Holland-Kaye claimed a single system for assessing passengers' health will help demand for air travel recover from the coronavirus pandemic.

He added that this would be an important boost to Britain's economy.

Mr Holland-Kaye said: "Heathrow continues to serve the nation by keeping vital supply lines open, and helping people get home.

"Now is the time to agree a common international standard for healthcare screening in airports so that when this crisis recedes, people can travel with confidence and we can get the British economy moving again."

He made the comments as Heathrow announced that passenger numbers for March fell by 52 per cent compared with the same month in 2019.

Many of the 3.1m journeys were repatriations, as people flew to and from Heathrow to reach their homes.

The collapse in demand saw the airport move to single runway operations on 6 April, and two terminals will be closed in the coming weeks.

Heathrow warned it expects passenger numbers for the whole of April to be down by more than 90 per cent year-on-year, with "lasting and significant industry-wide effects predicted".

These measures will "protect long-term jobs" by reducing operating costs and help Heathrow "remain financially resilient", the airport added.

Image source, PA Media

A London bus driver has said she is "frightened to die" and begged the government to do more to help protect transport staff.

Lorraine, 62, who covers south London routes, said she had written letters to relatives in fear she "could not say goodbye" if she contracted the virus.

Eighteen London transport staff, including 12 bus workers, have died after contracting Covid-19 so far.

The Mayor of London said "everything was being done to keep workers safe".

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Dr Alex Aldren trained in medicine, but left the profession to become a tenor.

He has now returned to the NHS to help during the coronavirus crisis and is using his singing skills on the wards of the Royal London Hospital and Newham Hospital.

A video of the doctor singing, which was shared online, has since gone around the world.