For many stores in England that closed during lockdown, the big reopening will not take place until 15 June.

But homeware stores have been able to welcome customers since 1 May, and today Ikea chose to reopen 19 branches in England and Northern Ireland.

Customers lined up in long, socially-distanced queues in the car park at the Milton Keynes branch today.

Meanwhile, Primark has told customers not to expect "special discounting" when it reopens all 153 stores in England on 15 June.

The retailer has built up nearly £2bn-worth of stock, double its normal inventory, but the company says it is mostly non-seasonal ranges which will be sold eventually.

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Kerry Allen
BBC Monitoring, Chinese Media Analyst

Image source, CGTN

The fiancée of a front-line Chinese doctor, whose death in mid-February led to nationwide mourning, has given birth to a baby girl.

Dr Peng Yinhua, a critical care specialist, was one of the front-line specialists in the city of Wuhan, where the virus was first discovered in late December.

The 29-year-old postponed his marriage, which had been scheduled for 1 February, to treat patients at one of the city's overcrowded hospitals. He died on 20 February, leaving behind his fiancée, who was six months pregnant.

When his death was reported, media shared his “hunsha zhao” or wedding photos – which are commonly taken prior to a wedding in China. Papers noted poignantly that the invitations to the couple’s wedding were still “sitting in his office drawer”.

Many on social media are calling the arrival of his fiancée’s daughter today a “blessing” but a “tragedy”, noting that the child was delivered on national Children’s Day, but would never get to meet her “hero” father.

Image source, CGTN

Only children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 are being asked to return to schools in England today.

One reason for limiting the number of year groups going back is that children will be taught in classes of up to 15 to maintain social distancing.

It would be difficult to keep to these small class sizes if all year groups were to return. Department for Education data shows the average class size in England’s primary schools last year was about 27 children.

Last year more than half a million primary pupils, about 13% of the total, were in classes with at least 31 pupils, including 41,723 taught in classes of 36 or more.

Image source, AFP

Large crowds gathered in Berlin on Sunday at a canal in Kreuzberg to take part in a "save rave culture" party.

Thousands congregated at the Landwehr Canal, according to BZ.de, external.

Rave clubs have been closed for months due to the coronavirus outbreak. It's not yet clear when they will reopen.

The gathering came on the day Germany allowed outdoor demonstrations without restrictions on participants again. However, the rules say people must remain 1.5m (5ft) from each other.

The event drew criticism from people on social media, external.

One person wrote on Facebook: "Do you seriously believe this campaign provides arguments for public funds for clubs, festivals and the people working there?"

Another person joked on Twitter: "Berlin is free from corona."

For many of us, our homes have become our workplaces over the past few months, and a full return to the office still appears a remote prospect.

Major tech companies say they are open to their staff working from home permanently. Employees are coming to realise remote working is not only possible, but in some cases preferable. A shift to a new way of working might already be under way.

Such a shift could have profound implications for our home lives, and by extension for the lives of our towns and cities: almost a quarter of all office space in England and Wales is in central London alone.

To understand those implications, we brought together four experts on city life, all of whom were working from home.

• Click here to read what the experts have to say

Image source, AFP

Andrew Harding
BBC News, Johannesburg

Image source, Getty Images

In South Africa, long queues have formed outside shops selling alcohol, as restrictions on its sale are lifted for the first time in two months. Social media posts showed people cheering and clapping as buyers emerged clutching their bottles. Some said they had queued overnight.

Singing as they queue… South Africans standing in the cold with their shopping trolleys, anxious to take advantage of a partial lifting of the country’s strict alcohol ban. Between Mondays and Thursdays, alcohol can now be bought for home consumption.

The ban was introduced in order to reduce alcohol-fuelled violence during the lockdown, and to relieve pressure on hospital casualty departments so they could focus on tackling coronavirus. South Africa is now easing some lockdown restrictions to help revive its economy. But there is concern that infection rates are beginning to rise sharply.

South Africans cheer as alcohol is back

Image source, Getty Images

Major League Baseball players have rejected an offer from clubs over pay and the season schedule, according to reports.

Players had been warned by club owners that the effects of the pandemic, including a delay from the original 26 March start date and having to play behind closed doors, would require additional salary cuts.

In March the players agreed to be paid on a prorated basis on games completed.

They have now proposed that they receive a higher percentage of their salaries while committing to play a 114-game regular season starting on 30 June, instead of the 82 games proposed by owners.

This would see the regular season end by 31 October and could extend the World Series beyond Thanksgiving on 26 November.

Judith Burns
Education reporter

“I’m excited to see my friends and see everyone but not excited for the work,” says 11-year-old Sean, who has just arrived back for his final few weeks at St Mary Magdalen’s Catholic Primary School In West London.

He says he has kept up with the home schooling “but it’s nowhere near the amount we normally do”.

His classmate Ruby, also 11, quite likes the extra space, with desks in rows facing the front instead of pushed together. “It could be better because sometimes people can be annoying.”

The school has split each class into two separate "bubbles", with one half in on Monday and Tuesday and the other on Thursday and Friday - which allows for a deep clean on Wednesdays.

Ruby says she will miss some of the people in the other group. School will be “way different”, she says.

Dora, who is not due in until Friday, is quite disappointed. “It isn’t long until the end of primary school and I’m worried I won't be able to see my friends before we’re all sent off to different secondary schools.”

Overall, 47 pupils have turned up at the school this morning, which includes 15 whose parents are key workers.

Headteacher Helen Frostick says the number is about half what she had expected. She believes many parents are waiting to see how it goes - so numbers may pick up in the coming days.

Image source, Getty Images

A number of European countries are easing restrictions on Monday:

• Moscow is allowing people outside for walks for the first time in nine weeks, under a rota system based on their neighbourhood. You can read more about the plans here
• Primary schools reopen in Greece, as well as some hotels, open-air cinemas, public swimming pools and golf courses
• Restaurants, cafes and museums open in the Netherlands, with bars serving customers again in Norway
• Portugal's cinemas and theatres open their doors
• Cultural sites are also opening. The Colosseum in Rome is once again allowing visitors, while the Grand Bazaar and Fatih mosque reopen in Istanbul

Rachel Schraer
BBC Health reporter

Some children in England will be going back to school from Monday 1 June.

Following a heated debate, the government published the advice it received from scientists on what is known about the impact of more children returning to the classroom.

But how dangerous is coronavirus for children?

Overall, most are at extremely low risk of becoming ill from the virus.

Adults - and particularly older adults - are far more likely to be seriously ill and die from complications.

Children have so far only accounted for between 1% and 5% of all diagnosed cases, according to Prof Adilia Warris, a paediatric infectious diseases specialist at the University of Exeter.

They often have "milder disease than adults," she says, pointing out that deaths have been rare.

• Click here to read more

Branwen Jeffreys
Education Editor

At Moorgate Primary Academy in Tamworth it was smiles all round this morning, as parents handed over their children with some relief in staggered drop-off times.

Most of Year 6 are expected back at this school, with some in each of the other year groups.

The school is part of a group of academies spread across Staffordshire, which is opening fully in all schools for the eligible year groups.

Just before and after 09:00 BST each new bubble of no more than 15 children lined up on their marks in the playground.

In their classroom waiting for them were desks spaced out in an L-shape, so each pupil has one other to talk to.

The day started with a quick check from their teacher on how they all are and what have they been reading.

Then a virtual assembly was held with the headteacher from his office – talking to his pupils over a computer rather than all together.

This is the beginning of the road back to school. Ministers hope that as the weeks continue more parents will feel confident enough to send their children back. They are downplaying expectations of a big return today, as it’s clear some schools are holding back for a week or two.

Police in Hong Kong have banned the annual candlelit vigil commemorating the Tiananmen Square crackdown, citing coronavirus concerns.

It is the first time in 30 years that a vigil won't be held in Hong Kong, one of just two places in Chinese territory that commemorates the activists killed in 1989. Macau, the second place, has also banned its vigil.

There are concerns it will not be commemorated once the new national security law being pushed by Beijing takes effect.

Lee Cheuk Yan, the chairman of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China said: "The ban is totally unreasonable."

The alliance said people could come to Victoria Park in a group of eight people and hold candles to commemorate the victims while observing social distancing. Hong Kong authorities have banned gatherings of more than eight because of the pandemic.

An online event will now be held.

Image source, Getty Images

Live sport can resume in England from today for the first time since mid-March - albeit behind closed doors.

And while snooker and horse racing will both come later on Monday, the first spectator sport to return is... pigeon racing.

The first race organised by the Barnsley Federation of Racing Pigeons will see about 4,000 pigeons travel around 75 miles from Leicester to Barnsley.

And while new Royal Pigeon Racing Association (RPRA) rules will have to be observed, fans and owners just need a pair of binoculars to watch, meaning social distancing is less of a problem than in other sports.

"We all look forward to racing pigeons, especially some of the elderly who don’t have partners," said Alan Catch, who will have 40 birds in the race.

"We had permission to start training two weeks ago. There are certain rules the RPRA have given us. You have to wear masks and keep your distance. You have to take them (the pigeons) and leave your baskets and somebody else takes them for the race. Then you just sit and wait."

Image source, Reuters

South Africa has delayed the reopening of schools by a week to allow school administrators to prepare.

Final year students in primary and secondary schools will now report back to school on 8 June, according to the Department of Basic Education.

Unions had urged teachers and staff to stay away from schools, saying they were not equipped to keep employees and pupils safe.

South Africa is gradually easing its lockdown restrictions, with the sale of alcohol and movement within districts allowed from 1 June.

Churches, temples and mosques have been allowed to reopen provided they have no more than 50 worshippers.

The country's confirmed coronavirus cases stand at 32,683, including 683 deaths.

Judith Burns
Education reporter

“It really is best for the family,” says mum Sophia as she drops her sons - Nico, nearly five, and Alessio, six - at St Mary Magdalen's Catholic Primary School in West London for the first time since March.

She says she has managed to do some home schooling with the boys over the past few weeks, but it hasn’t always been easy.

Julia, who has just dropped off Max, agrees. "I was 10% worried but 90% thinking it was the right thing to do," she says of her decision.

"The main thing is for normality and for his mental health. He needs the interaction with his friends. He’s been begging to come back."

The reception classroom looks completely different to normal, according to teaching assistant Clare Gordon.

"They’ve got their own little tables. Obviously they’re used to spending a lot of time on the carpet. Each table is separate, with its own tray of equipment so that the children don’t need to get out of their seats so much," she says.

As some lockdown measures in England are eased, primary schools are welcoming back more pupils today.

Children in Reception, Years 1 and 6 are returning, many after 10 weeks' absence, though schools in some areas remain closed. Photographers caught the moment some of them went back to classes.

Image source, PA Media

Image source, Reuters

Image source, PA Media

There have been reports of overcrowding at some railway stations in India after a number of services resumed there on Monday.

More than 145,000 people are set to travel by train in just one day as the country opens following a long lockdown.

Two hundred trains will now operate, up from 30.

India's ministry of home affairs has issued guidelines for travellers. All passengers have to be screened, and social distancing must be followed at both the station and on trains. Only those with confirmed tickets will be allowed to travel.

However maintaining social distancing and cleanliness is proving a difficult task with huge crowds gathered outside some stations.

India's mammoth railway network usually carries 25 million passengers every day.

Read more here

Lockdown measures across England are being eased from today.

Groups of up to six people from different households can meet outdoors, sticking two metres apart, and individuals can leave home without needing a "reasonable excuse".

The especially vulnerable, who've been shielding since lockdown began, can now also go out in a limited way.

There are fears though, including from some of the scientists advising the government, that all of these steps are being taken too quickly.

Read the new rules in detail

Image source, PA Media

Children in Reception and Years 1 and 6 are able to return to class today in England, with many having been out of primary school for 10 weeks.

However, there is a mixed local picture in how schools are reopening, and in some areas they will remain shut.

Long Crendon primary school in Aylesbury is one of those that has reopened, with teacher Simon Poote warning against "paranoia" and saying benefits “outweigh the minimal risk” for children.

“I am confident with the safety measures we have in place,” he told the BBC.

“With early years (children) the personal, social and emotional development is so key, it outweighs the minimal risk with the measures we have put in place.”

Brighton and Hove councillor John Allcock said they have elected not to reopen schools until they are confident in the test and trace service - launched on 28 May.

“We want to be confident the government’s own tests around effective testing and tracing is met after its introduction on Thursday, especially in a city that has high visitor footfall like we have," he said.

Image source, Getty Images

China's foreign ministry has hit out at the US for cutting ties with the World Health Organization (WHO) and called for the international community to increase support for the agency.

The foreign ministry said on Monday that the US has "revealed its pursuit of power politics and unilateralism". It also described America as a "habitual quitter".

President Trump said on Friday that the US was withdrawing from the WHO, accusing it of failing to hold Beijing to account over the coronavirus pandemic.

"China has total control over the World Health Organization," the president declared.

The WHO's Director-General, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, has promised a review of its response to the pandemic and defended its independence.

The EU has led calls for the Trump administration to reconsider its decision, warning it could hamper global efforts to tackle Covid-19.