Thousands attend Stereophonics gig, runners get close on half-marathons and drinkers hit pubs despite – The Sun

THOUSANDS of people crammed in to watch a Stereophonics gig, run half marathons and gathered for bar crawls this weekend despite growing coronavirus fears.

As the country prepares for significant shutdowns of mass gatherings and the cases of the killer bug surges, Brits still packed into large crowds on Saturday and Sunday.

⚠️ Read our coronavirus live blog for the latest news & updates

The Bath half marathon went ahead over the weekend despite the ever surging virus numbersCredit: EPA

Drinkers in Leeds still hit the pubs for an annual crawlCredit: nb press ltd

On Saturday, thousands poured into Cardiff’s 5,000-capacity Motorpoint Arena to watch the Stereophonics – but today thousands of Brits are working from home over virus fears.

Many people on social media slammed the fact the gig went ahead as fears grow over the danger of mingling with possibly infected people.

One person wrote: “This is so selfish, the people in the audience here are unlikely to be in high risk groups (they’re younger), but they could spread it to older friends, relatives and co-workers.”

And another said: “How incredibly irresponsible! It takes one corona-infected person to be there and the spread will be tremendous. Please help people social distancing and stop touring.”

Thousands took part in a number of distance races around the country over the weekend – with the Bath half and the Liverpool half still going ahead.

Around 6,200 runners took part in the 13.1 mile race in Bath with around another 6,000 athletes pounding Liverpool’s streets.

Sporting events across England and Europe – including the Premier League – have all been suspended in a bid to curb the outbreak.

But race organisers pressed ahead regardless following advice from government experts.

It comes as:

Tap to see where COVID-19 is near you

Bath MP Wera Hobhouse was one of thousands of people who condemned the decision and called for the race to be axed.

She said: “The most vulnerable in our city from a further spread of the infection must be the priority.”

And drinkers unwilling to miss out on an annual pub crawl in Leeds mingled through sixteen bars and pubs, despite advice to be careful amid the virus outbreak.

Several people on the fancy dress “Otley run” wore Hazmat suits in a slightly tone deaf move, as others were out in force to celebrate an early St Patrick’s Day.

It comes as self isolation is set to become a reality for thousands of British people in the coming weeks, as cases of coronavirus soar.

Boris Johnson said anyone with a “new, continuous” cough or high temperature should stay at home for seven days.

On Friday, the London Marathon was postponed until October because of the pandemic.

After struggling to make an official decision on banning mass gatherings as the cases and death toll grew, Mr Johnson is set to axe them this week.

The PM also wants a lot more businesses to move towards “widespread working from home”.

Mr Johnson is working with the chief medical officer and chief scientific adviser on plans to “stop various types of public event”.

The Government has yet to decide the size of events to be banned – they could include Glastonbury, Royal Ascot, the Grand National, the Chelsea Flower Show and even Wimbledon could be played behind closed doors.

Any ban will be part of emergency laws unveiled today.

The coronavirus crisis could last a year and leave 7.9 million patients in hospital, a leaked health report warned.

The document says the crisis could go on until spring 2021 and will cause huge strain on the NHS as the country’s death toll rose from 21 to 35 overnight.