THIS was noon yesterday in York's premier shopping street - a deserted scene that would have been utterly unthinkable just a month ago.

There is not a shopper, a tourist, a hen, a stag or a beggar in sight in Coney Street, which would normally be a bustling hive of activity on any normal Saturday.

But these are quite abnormal times, and the lockdown imposed to try to slow down the spread of the coronavirus has resulted in shoppers and tourists staying at home, and in only four shops being open this lunchtime - Boots, WHSmiths/Post Office, Holland & Barrett and Poundland.

However, if you look carefully at the photograph, you will see - in the distance - a vehicle. It is a police car, patrolling the quiet streets. But unlike any ordinary Saturday, there are no shoplifters to catch, drunken revellers to calm down or lost tourists to give directions to.

No ordinary Saturday.