Isolation Stories

Alone, heavily pregnant and fed up with life, Mel faces having to go through the birth of her first child without the married father of her baby, who has chosen to stay with his wife and family. She is without even her own family, who have given her the cold shoulder. Mel might be the only person in the country who doesn't mind isolation. At least everyone else will understand what it's like to be miserable.

A father and son are isolated in the family home, but they would rather be anywhere than forced to be together like this, with only each other for company. Russell, recently released from prison, has in the opinion of his dad brought shame on the family and ruined their reputation with the neighbours. Confused, weak and very ill, widower Ron approaches a crisis point as the virus ravages him. In spite of everything, Russell knows must find a way to lift his father's spirits and get him through the night.

The worst fears of paranoid, self-absorbed hypochondriac Mike have come true. There is an unstoppable virus that affects us all, and he can catch it just by breathing the same air as other people. He insists on an online session with his old friend and therapist Rochelle, who has always been his rock. Once again, she must try and talk him down from the precipice. But this time, who really is the patient, and who is the shrink?

A grandad resolves to bring his broken family together by being a grandad. Able to pass by his son-in-law Stephen's house on the way to collect his (essential) groceries, he stops off outside their window to loon about and make his grandkids smile. But Stephen, still suffering from his wife Karen having left him, doesn't welcome these daily visits. The two clash, and Stephen denies Karen access to their children. Events build to a climatic confrontation.

Four short films all made and transmitted during the Coronavirus crisis. But how was it done, with nobody from the crew having any contact with the cast? This final episode pays tribute to the unsung heroes who helped create a little bit of television history: the actors' families taking on cameraman and woman duties - plus make-up, wardrobe, props and everything else a normal short would need. We talk to the actors themselves about the experience of filming in their own homes, being directed remotely by directors, and we reveal the secrets behind this groundbreaking series of short films.