Adam Woodyatt admits EastEnders filming in the rain with coronavirus safety measures is 'a pain'

1 September 2020

Adam Woodyatt has admitted filming in the rain can be "a pain" because of new measures in place.

Adam Woodyatt

The 'EastEnders' actor - who has played Ian Beale on the BBC soap since 1985 - has opened up on production during the coronavirus pandemic, which has involved Perspex screens, CGI and body doubles to keep things safe.

Speaking to the Radio Times magazine, he explained: "Some days it works really well. Other times, it's been a pain.

"If rain gets on the Perspex, you can't shoot through it and you can only wipe it dry with a certain type of cloth. And when we're inside, we're getting reflections.

"Until everything gets back to normal, if it ever does, this is the way we have to do things. But it's honestly taking forever. I could fall asleep between takes."

His co-star Letitia Dean (Sharon Watts) has adjusted to life on set, with the soap set to return with new episodes on September 7.

She said: "You can't move for that two-metre stick and sanitiser!

"Filming with the screens took some getting used to, but we've been using them now for two months, so it's becoming second nature.

And I don't mind the slower pace. If it means we can keep making television, then that's great."

As well as the screens and social distancing, soap bosses also turned to real life partners of the cast to help as body doubles for kissing scenes.

Jon Sen, executive producer, recently said: "Our greatest challenge is that we have several family units, that's the nature of EastEnders and soap, and families who would be in the same household, so not at two-metre distances, but obviously they are played by actors who are obeying social distancing, so there's a huge challenge at the heart of it.

"For those really crucial moments where two characters kiss we've actually invited the real-life partners of the actors on to the set to be able to cheat those kinds of moments."

This comes after it was revealed 'EastEnders' actors have still been able to shoot smooching scenes by using plastic screens, which are then edited out afterwards.