An online soap opera produced by a Coventry performance company is putting the spotlight on life in lockdown.

Corona-nation Street is already attracting thousands of viewers from around the world as it follows the life of key characters as they get to grips with coronavirus restrictions.

The soap is capturing people’s attention as traditional soaps like Emmerdale and Coronation Street are filmed in advance, and episodes have yet to reflect the new situation. Plus the finished episodes could soon run out, with more not yet being made because of social distancing regulations.

And for Coventrians, there’s a chance to get involved in Corona-nation Street.

The makers, EGO Performance, are inviting people to send in pictures of their streets to feature in the opening titles.

For a donation of £5 you can also get a shoutout in an episode.

Who’s behind the series?

EGO Performance is an inclusive arts company and has members from the ages of eight upwards who are helping to work on the project.

It is written, directed and filmed by its members and funding is being provided by the Coventry City of Culture Trust.

The episodes feature key characters as they struggle with lockdown scenarios while living on Corona-nation Street.

The first three episodes received more than 7,500 views from around the world, including in Turkey, Spain, New Zealand, France and Ireland.

How do I watch it?

The episodes are released on the EGO Facebook page every Friday at 7pm.

You can also catch up on previous episodes here.

Georgina Egan, joint Artistic Director for EGO Performance, said: “We wanted to create a project that all our company could get involved with, that was a light hearted reflection on what many of us are experiencing.

“EGO works to create a safe inclusive place for people of all ages and abilities to get involved and develop their creative and life skills. It’s been wonderful to see so many of our members wanting to get involved in this project.

“We‘ve had such positive feedback so far from viewers from around the world so we are looking forward to seeing the response to the upcoming episodes – we can’t believe how far and wide the episodes have reached already!

“We have also had lovely feedback from members who have learning disabilities or struggle with mental health issues, saying that this project has really helped them during these tough times as a creative outlet and something to look forward to creating and watching each week.”

Chenine Bhathena, Creative Director at City of Culture added: “This project by EGO Performance is a unique look at life in lockdown and is a great example of the kind of work that can still be produced and delivered to a mass audience in these times.

“It’s also great to see a project that gives so many people an outlet for their creativity. The entire team have an incredibly busy schedule to write, film and edit these episodes in time for the next one to be released each Friday.

“The Trust has worked with EGO and supported the additions of captioning and BSL interpretation so that they can grow and develop their audiences and more people can log on to this pandemic-inspired soap opera.”