HBO has paused shooting on its “Game of Thrones” prequel “House of the Dragon” because of a positive COVID-19 case on set, Variety has confirmed.
As part of testing implemented for all production employees, a production member on the series tested positive for COVID-19. In compliance with industry guidelines, the production member is in isolation, and close contacts will be required to quarantine. Production will resume on Wednesday after a two-day pause.
This is the third COVID-affected shoot in the U.K. in the last few days. Netflix’s “Bridgerton” paused shooting after a positive case, resumed, and paused again after another case. The streamer’s “Matilda” has also paused for the same reason. London’s Riverside Studios has canceled its revival of Terence Rattigan’s play “The Browning Version,” starring Kenneth Branagh, because of the COVID-enforced absence of cast members during rehearsals.
The news of “House of the Dragon” pausing its shoot was first reported by Deadline.
The pauses come as the U.K. reopens fully on Monday, the so-called “Freedom Day.” Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak are both self-isolating after being pinged by the National Health Service track and trace app since they were in close proximity to someone who has the virus. Health Secretary Sajid Javid has revealed that he has tested positive and has mild symptoms.
On Sunday, the U.K. recorded 48,161 new cases of coronavirus and 316,691 in the last seven days, an increase of 43%, according to numbers released by the government. Daily deaths were 25 and 283 over the past week, an increase of 39.4%. The number of patients admitted into hospitals on Sunday was 740 and 4,313 in the last seven days, an increase of 39.4%.
Vaccinations are proceeding robustly. 87.9% of the U.K. population have received their first dose while 68.3% have received both doses. Some 1.1 million people are being tested for the virus daily and 7.1 million people have been tested over the past week.