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And that's a wrap folks.

On the day when people stood at their doors and applauded key workers and carers, we'll leave you with the thoughts of some residents in Portstewart.

People living in Castleton Park step out of their houses at 10:30 every morning to sing and dance to various songs - and they finish by singing the theme tune of the popular Australian soap Neighbours.

Little did they know that videos of their daily routines went viral - and caught the attention of some cast members of the popular soap.

"To all the wee folk of Castleton Park in Portstewart, this one's for you," was the message from actor Stefan Dennis, who plays Paul Robinson in the show.

Resident Dorothy Lennox said: "We got such a shock. It was brilliant!"

We'll be back with our live page tomorrow at 07:30 BST, Until then, stay safe and goodnight.

Councils have been instructed to hold meetings remotely in order to maintain social distancing throughout the Covid-19 pandemic.

Communities Minister Deirdre Hargey said that under new regulations in the Coronavirus Act 2020, all council meetings, including committee or sub-committee meetings, will take place via telephone conferencing, video conferencing, live webcast and live interactive streaming.

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Mrs Hargey said the news "will be welcomed by councils as it will enable them to proceed with their democratic business, while meeting social distancing requirements".

Councils are also permitted to postpone their annual meeting up to 30 September and hold other meetings as they consider necessary.

Information which generally has to be made available at council offices will now be made available on their websites.

Today we had another example of the pain being caused to families by the virus.

Ignatius O'Connell, 89, and his wife, Mary, 86, died with coronavirus at their north Belfast home earlier this month, within three days of each other.

The retired teachers were due to celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary this summer.

Their daughter, Bronagh O'Connell, was with her parents when they died.

She told BBC News NI's Sara Girvin: "It's very hard to see your wee mummy and daddy have what you thought was a chest infection, and then suddenly watch them not be able to breathe," she said.

Read more here.

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Here's a quick update on some of the key developments today.

Nine new Covid-related deaths were announced by Stormont's Department of Health today, bringing its total to 347.

That toll relates mainly to hospital fatalities and is likely to rise when community deaths are taken into account.

Across the UK, 26,711 have now died - an increase of 674 from Wednesday, while another 43 deaths were confirmed in the Republic of Ireland bringing the total there to 1,232.

However, both countries used different counting methods.

In other news:

• Northern Ireland's Health Minister Robin Swann has ruled out any change to NI's Covid-19 restrictions

• Universities in Northern Ireland face multi-million-pound losses due to the coronavirus pandemic
• Some schools face losing thousands of pounds paid for trips cancelled
• Prime Minister Boris Johnson says he will set out a "comprehensive plan" next week on a lockdown exit strategy

Sinn Féin MLA Sinéad Ennis tweeted from Warrenpoint.

Pipers and drummers joined Lagan Valley Hospital staff as they wished NHS fundraiser Captain Tom Moore a happy 100th birthday.

His appeal has topped £32m.

The war veteran, who raised the money by walking laps of his garden, has also been made an honorary colonel.

Staff and clients of the Simon Community NI have also shown their support for NHS staff and care workers.

A drone company has partnered with Ireland's health authority to deliver prescriptions.

Manna Aero is working with the Health Service Executive to deliver medicines and other essential supplies to vulnerable people in the small, rural town of Moneygall.

The company's trial uses autonomous drones made in Wales.

And it is looking at the possibility of testing in the UK within weeks.

Read more

As the nation shows its appreciation for our healthcare workers with the weekly Clap for Carers at 20:00, the PSNI's chief constable has a word of tribute as well.

Translink workers in Londonderry have shown their appreciation for the NHS and key workers with this amazing display of busses.

The busses in one of the city's depots were positioned in a heart to to show their gratitude to those on the front line battling against coronavirus.

Fire stations in County Antrim have been showing their support for the NHS with some colourful banners ahead of the clap for health workers and carers tonight.

Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis said he is "impressed and proud" of businesses across Northern Ireland during these "hard times".

In a video posted to Twitter, Mr Lewis said businesses here are the "heartbeats of communities" and thanked them for their contribution during the pandemic.

Mr Lewis said he was particularly proud of those businesses who have "converted" to producing and manufacturing ventilators, gowns and hand sanitisers.

"They are really playing a direct part in the battle against coronavirus," he added.

The UK Statistics Authority has reprimanded NI's Department of Health over its reporting of the Covid-19 figures.

In a letter to Permanent Secretary Richard Pengelly, Director General for Regulation Ed Humpherson said a news release on a departmental website and Twitter are “not sufficient“ for daily surveillance statistics, which should be released in “a transparent, easily accessible and orderly way”.

The responsibility for daily reporting moved from the PHA to the department on 19 April, with the launch of a dashboard containing comprehensive information. It was taken down two days later when a figure it contained was incorrect.

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The regulator said there was “limited explanation of the nature of the error”.

Mr Humpherson added that there have been gaps in the daily data, and other information has been lost since the statistics began to be issued through daily news releases.

He acknowledged, however, that it is clear the department wants to address the issues and resume publication of comprehensive information when the quality of the data is assured.

The Department of Health said a new dashboard would go live on Friday.

A coronavirus vaccine could be available for limited use by the end of the year, AstraZeneca's chief executive Pascal Soriot has said.

The pharmaceutical giant has agreed to manufacture and distribute a coronavirus vaccine being developed by the University of Oxford, if the treatment proves effective.

Mr Soriot said that "the need for a vaccine to defeat the virus is urgent".

The first human trial in Europe for a vaccine began in Oxford last week.

Mr Soriot said the University of Oxford team's track record is very strong, their technology is advanced, and AstraZeneca will know by June or July whether its confidence is well-placed.

Read more

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Agriculture Minister Edwin Poots has announced further measures to enable more TB herd tests to be completed safely on farms.

He says from 4 May, calves under 180 days old may be exempt from all bovine TB (bTB) herd test types if they "cannot be tested safely in accordance with the latest Public Health Agency guidance on social distancing amid the Covid-19 crisis".

He says this will allow more herd tests to "proceed safely".

Mr Poots also announced a number of additional temporary measures to ease movement and testing controls while protecting animal health.

Additional temporary measures include:

• Herds restricted for overdue tests will be allowed to purchase in cattle
• Herds will not be automatically associated when cattle are permitted to move, on welfare grounds, from one TB restricted herd to another restricted herd
• The requirement for herds, that haven’t been tested for 15 months, to complete two herd tests before regaining OTF status is being withdrawn as a temporary measure