Pete Cooper
BBC News

It is hoped a couple from south Norfolk will be able to get refuge in the US after four people died of suspected coronavirus on their cruise ship.

David and Heather Haycox from Brooke were transferred from the contaminated vessel Zaandam close to Panama over the weekend.

It is hoped their new liner will be allowed to dock in America, after numerous countries turned away their original cruise ship.

Image source, Reuters

The couple's daughter, Sami Haycox, said: "The next big thing is to be lobbying America to let the boat dock so they can come home from there but we don't know if that will happen."

Norwich City manager Daniel Farke has posted a message on Twitter to Canaries fans.

In he says "the sun will shine again" and asks supports to "look after each other and stay healthy".

James Paget University Hospital has announced that a patient with coronvirus died on Sunday.

It said the man, in his 80s, had underlying health conditions.

His family had been informed, said a spokesman for the hospital, which is in Gorleston-on-Sea, Norfolk.

Normally thousands of people all ages are playing football matches at the weekend.

Covid-19 has put a stop to that, so how do you keep the young footballers’ team spirit alive?

Norfolk youth side Stoke United FC came up with the idea of a video, featuring a Stormzy soundtrack, to keep the team practising.

Chairman and coach Rob Ward said: "We wanted to do something for their well-being, to make sure they’re still connected, and they were still playing the game which they obviously miss.

"Whilst it’s not the same, we thought it was probably the next best thing."

Stoke United FC, based in Stoke Holy Cross near Norwich, is an under-eleven side in the Norfolk Combined Youth Football League, external.

Julian of Norwich, who spent her life isolated in prayer, is more relevant than ever, a historian says.

Adam Williams
BBC England

Image source, Brad Damms

A photographer is sharing his images on social media in a bid to help those self-isolating "see the beauty of the countryside".

Brad Damms, from Norfolk, has been posting, external landscape and wildlife images daily.

He says he hopes that, for people who can't leave the house, his photos will "lift spirits and take their mind off our current situation".

See a selection of his images here.

What plants and animals can we expect to see at the moment? And how can we help everything flourish?

Local Democracy Reporting Service

A Norwich charity supporting thousands of vulnerable young people is fighting for survival after losing funding due to the spread of the coronavirus.

OPEN Norwich, external has postponed all events at its Bank Plain venue, meaning the organisation’s Youth Trust could lose its funding from next month.

Image source, Google

Chief executive Laura Rycroft has warned OPEN could soon face the "difficult decision" to close the service for good.

Its lottery funding runs out at the end of April, and Mrs Rycroft said the timing "couldn’t be any worse".

The youth service costs OPEN about £25,000 a month to run and offers support to about 3,000 vulnerable young people a year.

Mrs Rycroft said although the government has offered support for business, charities risked falling through the cracks.

The Treasury has been approached for comment.

Nic Rigby
BBC News

A drop in advertising revenue resulting from the coronavirus lockdown has put a major newspaper group's future in jeopardy, a senior manager has warned.

Tim Youngman, the head of marketing for Archant, external - which publishes the Eastern Daily Press, Norwich Evening News, East Anglian Daily Times and Ipswich Star, said the lack of advertising was a "threat".

"We are a mainly advertising-funded business and if we don't get that advertising revenue unfortunately the future looks bleak not just for us but for newspapers," he said.

"We want to support those local businesses that are forced to close but are also asking larger businesses not in jeopardy to continue to support us."

He said newspapers were playing a key role in supporting the community during the coronavirus lockdown.

There was clapping, cheering, pots clanging and car horns honking as people across the East of England gave their thanks to the NHS.

Many people took part in the social media campaign on Thursday night, where people across the UK applauded the work of the health service treating coronavirus patients.

• A Norwich bar and distillery owner has remortgaged his own property to continue paying his staff, Norwich Evening News reported, external
• North Norfolk News, external has a round-up of events that have been cancelled on the coast
• A cat rescue centre based in East Harling has appealed for donations, the Eastern Daily Press reported, external

Local Democracy Reporting Service

The University of East Anglia has been forced to cancel its final year students' graduation ceremonies due to coronavirus.

In an email, the vice chancellor, Professor David Richardson, said it was with "great sadness" they had taken the decision to cancel the ceremonies, due to take place 15-22 July.

He added: "I want to assure you this decision has not been taken lightly."

Image source, N CHADWICK/GEOGRAPH

Exams and teaching have been moved online and students who meet degree requirements will receive their certificates by post.

Chris Matthews, 22, an English and creative writing student, said he understood why the decision had been taken: "People’s safety is the priority in this pandemic."

He added that he was "gutted" to miss out on the chance to celebrate.

Fellow student Jessica Barrett, studying English Literature, said: "The cancellation is devastating news for final year students."

A petition calling on the university to guarantee final year students a graduation received more than 500 signatures in its first hour.

Image source, Norfolk Libraries and Information Service

A nursery rhyme singalong by staff at a Norfolk library has proved an online hit with parents and children around the UK.

A rousing performance of Heads, Shoulders, Knees and Toes; Five Little Monkeys; Wind the Bobbin Up and other pre-school favourites was broadcast on Facebook on Tuesday morning. The video has since racked up more than 20,000 views online.

Librarians Adam and Hannah, who host weekly singalongs at Norfolk and Norwich Millennium Library, said: "We know you can't come to us, so we're bringing our Bounce and Rhyme to you."

A mum from Surrey commented: "Thank you for making us giggle and providing some happiness during this crazy time."

"Loving this from Somerset," said another. Others tuned in from Wales and Scotland.

The library is also providing a daily storytime online and a weekly Lego club.

Margaret Dewsbury, cabinet member for communities at Norfolk County Council, said: “We’ve even had viewers logging on from other parts of the country and the response so far has been wonderful, showing just how brilliant and well-loved these activities are.”

A last minute wedding, an engagement in lockdown and a dog that was so happy it hurt - some of the lighter moments in the last few days.

BBC Look East

Clare Gray says her family will be unable to celebrate the diamond wedding anniversary of grandparents Margaret and Frank Gray in Norwich due to the coronavirus.

As the couple have been married for 60 years, they should also be receiving a card from the Queen.

Image source, Clare Gray

Happy anniversary, Margaret and Frank.

Pam Hayward in Brooke, Norfolk, sent us this poem written by her seven-year-old grandson Oliver Hayward from Little Easton, Essex.

She said he sent it to her "to cheer me up as I'm in self-imposed isolation."

Image source, Pam Hayward

With the government's request for us to stay at home to help slow the spread of the coronavirus, many people are now missing the opportunity to spend time in the great outdoors.

On the morning before the government announced its new guidelines resulting in the closure of many nature reserves, BBC Look East cameraman Shaun Whitmore was at Strumpshaw Fen in Norfolk.

Here he shares his last trip to the reserve for a while.

Video shows police removing councillor Joanne Rust from a swimming pool in Tenerife.

Here's how some of the newspapers in our region have been reporting the coronavirus pandemic...

• The Northampton Chronicle, external reports that a Northampton banking campus has faced scrutiny from employees who believe they could work from home but are not being allowed to so.
• Tenants and owners have remained defiant after being told to leave their caravans from holiday parks across Essex, reports the Essex Chronicle, external.
• The Eastern Daily Press, external has a story on Amazona Zoo in Cromer calling on closed restaurants, café and hotel owners to donate fruit and vegetables to help feed its animals.